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In his three years in the Akademiya, this is the first time Gregor is allowed to sit at one of the Haravatat thesis defences. Only those who are about to select their theses or are due to present soon are allowed to sit in the defences, and Gregor, who has to choose a thesis topic next year, was invited to this session.
He shuffles next to one of his seniors, Viraf, who is due to present his thesis next year. Viraf gives him a cursory nod but says nothing else. Theses defences are formal occasions, and students are expected to keep their mouths shut unless they are attacking the validity of the thesis being defended lest they attract the ire of Scribe Alhaitham, who is duty bound to oversee and record Haravatat's theses defences.
Except today, Scribe Alhaitham walks in with another man by his side.
Gregor is almost sure this man is not a part of their Darshan. Not only does Gregor not recognise the man, he is dressed in Kshahrewar white instead of Haravatat black. The man's presence is commanding, and his combined appearance with Scribe Alhaitham, who attracts attention simply by existing, has the room settle into a hush.
The man's piercing red eyes settle on Gregor, who has to suppress a flinch. "I don't recognise all of you, so let me introduce myself. My name is Kaveh, I'm from the Kshahrewar Darshan... and I'm Alhaitham's roommate." He narrows his eyes and looks around the room, daring anyone to comment on his presence.
An awkward silence permeates the room. "Mr. Kaveh," one of the Herbads speaks up. "Personal connections with the Scribe aside, what brings you, a member of the Kshahrewar Darshan, to a Haravatat meeting?"
"Alhaitham's hearing aids broke last night. I'll be his interpreter until they're fixed. Unless any of you are fluent in Sumerian Sign Language?" Kaveh demands.
Gregor's first thought is, the Scribe is deaf? He looks around the room, sees everyone in the room shaking their heads one by one, and realises that this is news to no one but him. He also belatedly realises that Scribe Alhaitham is not wearing the usual bulky gadget that covers both his ears, which occurs to him must be Scribe Alhaitham's hearing aids.
One of the students on thesis defence says, "If the Scribe can't hear us right now, maybe we should postpone this defence to a later date..."
Scribe Alhaitham starts signing to Mr. Kaveh, who translates dutifully. "'I can read lips, my disability does not affect my ability to write, and as Scribe my active participation is not needed. We should continue.'"
When the Scribe stops signing, Mr. Kaveh continues, "My presence is not for Alhaitham to understand you, but for you to understand him. Writing each sentence takes too much time and wears on Alhaitham's patience, which will undoubtedly come back to bite me in the ass when he comes home sulking that no one can understand him."
To Gregor's surprise, the usually stoic Scribe rolls his eyes at his roommate.
"There is no shame in admitting weakness, Scribe Alhaitham. We would be happy to accommodate you if needed," one of the other graduates says. Murmurs of agreement travel around the room.
Scribe Alhaitham's expression darkens as he starts signing at a furious pace, and Gregor is somewhat surprised that Mr. Kaveh can keep up with that speed. ""Accommodations have never been provided by the Akademiya, nor will they ever be. So stay in your lane; do your job and I'll do mine.'" Mr. Kaveh translates.
The scholars gape at Mr. Kaveh. Mr. Kaveh holds up his hands in surrender and shrugs at them in return. "Don't shoot the messenger," he says.
The theses defences lasted two students before Scribe Alhaitham's patience wears thin and he obliterates them verbally, with Mr. Kaveh as his mouthpiece. The third student runs out crying, and the Herbads decide to postpone the fourth student's defence before no one is allowed to graduate this year.
Viraf escapes to the House of Daena, dragging Gregor with him. "I almost defended my thesis this year," Viraf breathes. "Thank Lesser Lord Kusanali I took an extra year, I thought I was incompetent but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise."
Gregor hesitates. "Is the Scribe always so... crass?"
Viraf shakes his head. "I'm pretty sure that Mr. Kaveh was embellishing the Scribe's words."
Even if Mr. Kaveh was changing Scribe Alhaitham's words, he must have realised, since by his own admission he could read lips. But Gregor does not voice this thought. Instead, he asks, "Why would he do that?"
"I heard from my Kshahrewar friends that Mr. Kaveh has never liked the Akademiya's methods."
"Actually, I'm out of the loop," Gregor admits. "Who is Mr. Kaveh? Is he still being funded by the Akademiya? I've heard that Kshahrewar isn't a well-funded Darshan either, so he shouldn't risk his funding by insulting them like that."
"You don't know who Mr. Kaveh is?" Viraf says incredulously. "He's the architect that designed the Palace of Alcazarzaray. Rumour has it that he's the second coming of Pir Kavikavus, some even claiming that he exceeds Pir Kavikavus' genius!"
Whoever Mr. Kaveh is, if he's being compared to Pir Kavikavus, who has an entire scholarship named after him, Gregor thinks he must be extremely talented one way or another.
"Unlike Alhaitham, I can hear you, you know." Both Haravatat students startle and turn around to face the stormy-looking Mr. Kaveh. Gregor's eyes start darting around looking for an escape, but Mr. Kaveh catches on. "No, don't run away. Aren't you two students of the Haravatat Darshan?"
"Y-yes, sir," Gregor stammers out.
Mr. Kaveh hums. "Indulge my curiosity. Haravatat students have to learn twenty languages to qualify for graduation, yet none of you thought to learn an existing language that benefits living, breathing people? Neither of you considered killing two birds with one stone, bridging the accessibility gap and satisfying one of your graduation requirements at once?"
Luckily for the both of them, Scribe Alhaitham comes to the rescue. He swiftly gets up from his seat, grabs Mr. Kaveh by the shoulder to get his attention, and starts signing away. [1]
"What do you mean, no one in the Akademiya teaches Sumerian Sign Language?!" Kaveh yells.
Everyone present in the House of Daena holds their breaths collectively.
Scribe Alhaitham sighs and continues signing. [2]
"Just because it doesn't have a written and spoken version? That's ableist. Some of those languages you learn don't have a clear spoken version, but they qualify as languages. SSL literally has the word 'language' in its name."
There is a pinched, exasperated look on Scribe Alhaitham's face as he communicates with Mr. Kaveh, one that does not escape his notice. [3]
Mr. Kaveh crosses his arms. "Maybe we'd have more deaf students if we provided accessible education to them."
Back in Gregor's hometown of Mondstadt, there is a blind woman known as Glory who everyone bands together to help. Sara of Good Hunter hires adventurers to bring Glory her food, people take turns helping Glory clean her house, and if she ever loses her way she just needs to call out and the closest person will jump to her aid.
Now that he thinks about it, disabled people are invisible in Sumeru. There is no braille inscribed on the walls, no assistance provided by strangers, and now that Mr. Kaveh points it out, education is not accessible to people with disabilities in the Nation of Wisdom.
Accommodations have never been provided by the Akademiya, nor will they ever be, Scribe Alhaitham said earlier. Barring Scribe Alhaitham, whose brilliant mind allows him to work with his disability, how do people with disabilities live in Sumeru?
Scribe Alhaitham starts signing [4], but Mr. Kaveh grabs his arm. "I'm not budging on this. We're starting an SSL lecture right now."
Even though the Scribe looks like the more well-built of the two, Mr. Kaveh's grip on Scribe Alhaitham's forearm is so tight that he struggles to pry Mr. Kaveh's hand off him. "You think you, a person who lives a sedentary lifestyle, can win in a battle of strength against me, a hands-on builder who spends many hours on construction sites?"
Mr. Kaveh laughs when the other man gives up immediately. "You two, come with me," Mr. Kaveh commands with a curled finger, and Viraf and Gregor only share a moment to exchange glances before they too give up and follow Mr. Kaveh.
"Alhaitham... and Mr. Kaveh! What a surprise to see you here. What brings you here?" Nilou asks. The other troupe members take a fearful glance at their Scribe, who is definitely pretending to be blind as well as deaf.
No one can blame them. Residents of the Grand Bazaar are typically weary of Akademiya staff, since their presence indicates that they will try to shut down Zubayr Theatre's activities one way or another, and the Scribe is a high ranking position that holds a lot of power.
Mr. Kaveh's smile is blinding. "Nilou, would you mind if we borrowed a small part of the Grand Bazaar? Alhaitham and I just want to host an impromptu event."
Nilou frowns a little. "An impromptu event?"
"We--" Scribe Alhaitham glares at Mr. Kaveh, who doubles down on his words. "We want to hold a one-time sign language workshop. Just to gauge interest, nothing more."
"Sign language...? Why, that's a brilliant idea!" Nilou exclaims as she clasps her hands. Her excitement draws the attention of the people nearby, who approach cautiously to see what their star has to say.
Soon, a small crowd gathers around Mr. Kaveh. The members of Zubayr theatre somehow manage to scrounge up some chairs for members of the audience to sit comfortably. Some of the Corps of Thirty even join in, taking turns to guard the Grand Bazaar and sit in on the workshop during their free time.
Somehow, the workshop has united everyone; rainforest and desert, Mondstadt and Sumeru, academics and tradesmen. Regardless of how much anyone takes away from it, bringing everyone together is a huge feat in itself.
Personally, Gregor thought the sign language workshop was a huge success, impromptu as it was. Mr. Kaveh managed to share some brief history of Sumerian Sign Language with everyone in such simple terms that even the common people could understand, and even taught them a few basic signs. Most people in the Grand Bazaar are now fumbling with their hands, practicing the same few signs of Hello, How are you?, Goodbye and Thank you.
Mr. Kaveh obviously does not share the same sentiments, because he is sulking while tinkering with the accessory Gregor now recognises as Scribe Alhaitham's hearing aids.
Viraf stalls for a little before pulling Gregor in close. "I need to get back to my thesis, so I'm going to say goodbye to Scribe Alhaitham and Mr. Kaveh. You coming?" Gregor nods and stands up with Viraf. Even if he has no thesis to write yet and the sign language workshop was the most fun he has had in months, he does need to hit the books for his next exam.
They approach Scribe Alhaitham together, who raises his head and gestures for them to speak. Viraf takes the lead, bowing first, and Gregor follows hastily. "Thank you for today, Scribe Alhaitham, Mr. Kaveh. If nothing else is needed of us, we'd like to take our leave for today."
"And," Gregor cuts in impulsively. "If you're amenable, Scribe Alhaitham, I'd like to get your opinion on my thesis topic." Because after today, he thinks he knows what he wants to write about.
Scribe Alhaitham looks at his hands for a few seconds, reminiscent of the rest of the Grand Bazaar, then elbows Kaveh in the ribs.
"Sorry for not being at your beck and call, O Great Scribe," Mr. Kaveh growls. "I'm trying to fix the hearing aids that you broke."
In order to get Mr. Kaveh's attention, Scribe Alhaitham snatches the broken hearing aids from Mr. Kaveh and dumps them in his own lap. Once Mr. Kaveh is finally paying attention to him, Scribe Alhaitham signs something. [5]
"There was no need to step in. I'm stronger than you think. I wield a claymore, for Archon's sake," Mr. Kaveh mumbles. "Also, be careful with that. Do you know how expensive these parts are? I had to customise these for you because you can't stand the standard hearing aids."
The too-innocent look on Scribe Alhaitham's face does not match the growing irritation Mr. Kaveh emits. [6]
"Keep up that attitude and maybe I won't fix your hearing aids," Mr. Kaveh threatens.
Scribe Alhaitham smirks, then makes a few hand signs. [7]
"You...!" Mr. Kaveh inhales deeply, holds his breath for a few seconds and lets it out slowly. "Don't slap the deaf guy, don't slap the deaf guy..."
Neither Viraf nor Gregor understand what Scribe Alhaitham is signing, but they know that whatever he has said, Mr. Kaveh does not like. [8] Mr. Kaveh's expression changes from one of exasperation to cold anger, his eyes narrowed and jaw clenched. "I'm done with you. Figure out your own accessibility."
Gregor has never seen Scribe Alhaitham with such a defeated, forlorn look on his face as he watches Mr. Kaveh's retreating back. Eventually, he snaps out of his daze, pulling out a piece of paper and scribbling on it before shoving it in Gregor's hands.
You're dismissed. Let's talk about your thesis topic on a different day. I have to apologise to Kaveh first.
Both of them watch as Scribe Alhaitham grabs the hearing aids hastily and scrambles desperately after his roommate. "Do you wanna study together?" Viraf says eventually. Gregor has no reason to say no, so he lets himself get dragged by someone else for the nth time that day.
Viraf and Gregor end up at Lambad's Tavern for supper. Gregor has a few drinks while Viraf abstains, though nothing can compare to Mondstadt's cider.
For a split second, Gregor thinks he might have had too much to drink. When Viraf follows his line of sight and says, "huh," however, he knows he is not dreaming.
Mr. Kaveh and Scribe Alhaitham are sitting on a bench outside the tavern, communicating purely in sign language. The two of them are in their own world, a bubble separating them from the rest of Sumeru. It must not be comfortable to communicate in sign language in the dim moonlight, but somehow the two men are so engaged in what the other is saying that they do not mind the low visibility.
Gregor has not learnt enough sign language from that one session, but he does catch Mr. Kaveh's sign name a few times; the syllable for Kaf in Sumerian's rainforest dialect in Sumerian Sign, and a made up sign consisting of two slightly curved fingers lightly combing up the left side of one's hair. Coming from the usually logical, straightlaced Scribe, that sign feels almost tender.
One of the first things Mr. Kaveh told them at the start of the workshop was not to give themselves a sign name, because it is deaf culture for a sign name to come from a deaf person themselves. He mentioned it being akin to a Sumeru-born person giving themselves an Inazuman name; unless they have significant cultural roots in Inazuma, it is considered culturally insensitive and inappropriate.
Scribe Alhaitham must have given Mr. Kaveh his sign name, Gregor thinks.
"I didn't know that Mr. Kaveh could speak sign language that fluently," Gregor comments absently.
"When they were students, Scribe Alhaitham used to tear off his hearing aids when he grew tired of Mr. Kaveh, so Mr. Kaveh learnt sign language to continue their arg-- I mean, discussions."
"That's why he learnt sign language?" Gregor says incredulously.
Viraf nods. "I heard he learnt it in less than a month too. I think he held us to the same standards, which is why he got so upset that his idea 'failed'," Viraf explains, drawing quotation marks around the word 'failed'.
Gregor does not know what is more terrifying; that Mr. Kaveh learnt a whole new language in less than a month, or that the fact that Mr. Kaveh is of the Kshahrewar Darshan, which means he is infinitely more proficient at mechanics and architecture than he is at linguistics, which he has already shown more proficiency than most Haravatat hopefuls.
"Well, now I know why they are roommates. The Scribe must feel more comfortable living with someone who can speak the same language as he does."
Viraf gives him a weird look for a few seconds before realisation dawns on his face. "Ah, I forget you're not a native Sumerian speaker because you're so fluent at the language." Gregor flushes at the unexpected praise from his senior. "The term 'roommates' is old Sumerian slang for a homosexual couple. Unlike in Mondstadt, same-sex marriages are not legal yet, though I heard Lesser Lord Kusanali is planning to change that."
Gregor jerks. "That's why the people I live with tell me that we're housemates, even though we're technically roommates?"
The corner of Viraf's mouth twitches. "Don't worry, we knew it was a cultural thing, but the look of horror on their faces was priceless."
"But you just said you thought I was a native Sumerian speaker!" Gregor is mortified; how many people think he and his room-- no, flatmate are dating? Viraf fights to hold back his laughter.
"How many times must I tell you two? Just because Hai-- Alhaitham is deaf, does not mean I am deaf as well."
Viraf and Gregor exchange a look. He was about to call the Scribe 'Haitham', they both think in unison, though neither of them will voice it in the face of Mr. Kaveh's fury and Scribe Alhaitham's detached bemusement.
Scribe Alhaitham stomps on the ground twice, attracting Mr. Kaveh's attention so that he can sign comfortably to the other man (his partner? roommate? they were roommates?). [9]
"Scram, both of you," Mr. Kaveh points at them menacingly. "And tomorrow, I expect to see you two in the Grand Bazaar for sign language lessons after your formal studies in the Akademiya."
"Yes sir," they chorus in unison, scurrying away from Mr. Kaveh's threatening glare and the Scribe's mocking salute.
[1] "Don't blame the students. Sumerian Sign Language is neither a qualifying language for Haravatat graduation, nor is it taught in the Akademiya."
[2] "From what I understand, a 'qualifying' language requires one of the following: historical significance, both a written and spoken component, or an attempt at establishing one of the other from existing manuscripts."
[3] "Kaveh. Leave it alone. As far as I know, I am the only deaf person in a position of power in the Akademiya."
[4] "You know that because I am the only deaf person at the Akademiya, whatever you're thinking of is only going to cause more trouble for me?"
[5] "Sorry for trying to protect the love of my life from bodily harm."
[6] "When have you had reservations about spending my money? Also, hearing is tiring. What's the point of hearing aids? The only person in my life I want to communicate with is you, and you're fluent in SSL."
[7] "Maybe it's for the best that your attempt at educating the masses failed. If more people know SSL, we won't be able to talk dirty in public anymore."
[8] "Besides, it would take too much time and effort to try and teach them all, hopeless as they are. You forget the masses are not as gifted as you and I."
[9] "Don't bully my juniors too hard. Besides, we have things to do. Didn't you say you wanted to go to the Akademiya to get official approval to teach SSL?"