Participants:
| Date: | 08 June 2011 |
|---|---|
| Location: | Eastern Weyr: Upper Bowl West |
| Synopsis: | Lenia and Neni meet up, and are joined by Fiala, who is not quite herself at first. |
| Rating: | G |
| Logger: | Nenienne |
Along the western wall is the infirmary weyr with healers and dragons often seen working and lounging - respectively - in the small patch of smooth ground nearby. Further north, the yawning entrance to the upper hatching caverns interrupts the otherwise sheer rock face. This whole section of the bowl is a good deal warmer than the rest, which makes it a less-than-ideal location to spend time in the heat of the Southern sun. In between the two caverns is a smaller hole in the rock wall; a set of stairs leading down to the lower parts of the weyr.
It's fairly early morning, and Lenia is just waking up. Instead of staying awake all night from watching the stars as normal, she fell asleep early, sleeping curled up against her dragon in the middle of the bowl. Probably not the safest place to sleep, but it's fairly normal for this dragonpair, especially when the weather warms. She stirs, stretching her limbs and standing, shaking out her short locks in an effort to look at least semi-presentable.
Nenienne is up early today as well, though she's still carrying a klah mug as she crosses through the bowl. Noticing the bluerider pair, she pauses and says politely, "Good morning, Lenia. How are you and Orralth today?"
A third figure walks, though slowly, her steps halting and uneven. It is Fiala, dressed in a light brownish shift that is too short for her, and looks like it has been slept in. Her eyes are closed, and her tousled, tangled hair dangles limply down her back, over her shoulders, and about her face, obscuring her eyes. As those are closed, however, it may not be such a problem.
"Whoa. Watch out." Lenia calls to the young woman walking toward them with hair hung over her eyes. The bluerider snorts at Nenienne's query and shrugs a single shoulder in a practiced move. "We're awake. You?" Orralth swivels his head, lifting it from his forepaws just high enough to take in both of the other women before lowering it again with a bored whuff. "Stop that, Orrie." She snickers at her dragon, thumping him lightly on the nose. "He doesn't do mornings very well. Especially without a good dose of sunshine."
Nenienne doesn't smile, but there is humor in her voice as she says, "Can't say as I blame him." She glances curiously over to Fiala, then asks, "Nursing a sick runner again?"
Fiala doesn't answer, though she does stop for a moment. Then she lifts up her arms and begins to flap them, hopping once or twice. Second time, she lands badly, one foot coming down in a slight hollow of the floor. Not much, but uneven enough for slender bare feet. She tumbloes down onto her rump, gives a soft, startled squeak, then looks up with wide and bewildered eyes.
Orralth is the first of the dragonpair to respond. Barely awake or not, that's some funny stuff. He whuffs out a humorous laugh, nudging Lenia toward the fallen girl. Whether it's to notice her or help her, only they know. However, Lenia does lean down and offer her hand to the woman. "Here." She can't prevent the soft chuckles that escape. "Need some help?"
"That or sleepwalking?" Neni asks, as Fiala falls over. Seeing that Lenia has the situation in hand, she remembers her klah and holds out the mug to Fiala. "Need some? It has milk but no sweetening."
"Oh! Ah… thanks!" Fiala blinks up at the pair of women. "How… how did I get here?" she asks softly. "I… I wasn't here. I was… I'm not sure." She shakes her head, raching for Lenia's hand and Nenienne's mug at the same time. Somehow she manages to smack herself in the nose. "I need it double, I think."
That just sets Orralth off. It's a good thing Lenia has moved, because he's whuffing his amusement, nearly rolling with the laughter. If they were riders, their own dragons would be passing the amusement on. It's that funny to him. In fact, it's nearly got Lenia in stitches. Not so much on her own account as on his. She tries to rein in the laughter, but is pretty ineffective at it. "Stop it, Orralth, at least let me get her straightened out first, before you get all crazy." She shakes her head. Then, she notices the one thing that can stop her laughter in its tracks. "Ooooh. Klah." Not for her, though. Rats. She sniffs the air, stepping a little bit closer to at least enjoy the smell. She holds out her hand, reaching for Fiala's nearest hand. Orralth's still laughing, so she starts chuckling again. "I think you might have been sleepwalking."
Nenienne nods in agreement. "That sounds like the most likely scenario," she asserts. She pulls the mug far enough out of the way that it doesn't get spilled, or some other crime of humanity. Once Fiala is a little better coordinated she offers it again. "Only one mug, sadly, since I needed one hand free. But this should be enough to hold you until you get to the Living Cavern." She studies Orralth curiously, then asks tentatively, "Is he actually laughing?"
"A sip is fine, really," Fiala murmurs softly. Her cheeks flush a little, and then she shakes her head. "I was above the ocean, and then above the trees. It was… weird." She rubs at her eyes, taking a tiny sip of the mug and then handing it back. She rises assisted by Lenia's help, wobbly like a newborn runnerbeast. "I suppose I looked very silly."
"Oh, yeah." Lenia begins to explain happily. "Yeah, he's laughing his blue fool head off." She grins widely, her smile nearly sparkling with happiness. "He probably shouldn't laugh like that at someone's misfortune, but he thinks it's funny. Mostly because I do stuff like that all the time. Especially before I'm awake. There was this one time when we were sitting up there," she points up toward her favorite peak / watching point, and continues, "and I fell asleep at the very end of the starwatch. When my relief came to take over, he scared me so much I pretty much walked off the edge of the cliff. Orrie caught me, but he was laughing too much to do anything but fly around in lazy circles for quite a while." She doesn't seem to realize how her story sounds. "Oh, dreams like that are fun." She's not sure of either girl's name, but social graces aren't really the bluerider's strong point. Especially this early in the morning. Case in point, she bluntly offers, "Yeah, Orralth says you looked pretty funny." Hence all the 'laughter'.
Nenienne says, "I've been here since the first hatching, but this is the first time I've seen a dragon laugh. Just when I think I've seen it all…" Her voice trails off, and she takes back her mug. With a shrug when Fiala only takes a sip, Neni begins gulping familiarly, before adding, "That sounds like a neat dream, at least."
"I'm Fiala. Mostly in the beast caverns. I'm a stablehand." The girl shakes out her shift, not seeming too terribly embarrassed by her clothing. After all, she's already sleepwalking… "It's fine, really," she murmurs. "I don't mind him laughing at me. I suppose I would be too." She bobs her head to the dragon. "Good morning, Orralth. Ah… it is… ah… morning, right?"
Orralth has quite a bit more respect for niceties than his rider. He lumbers a bit, getting close enough to the group of women to nudge his rider and then give her companions a friendly nod. The laughter seems to have died off, and he tilts his head, looking at the klah. "Oh. I'm Lenia, and of course, he's Orralth." It's given succinctly as though strongly encouraged by the blue. "Yeah, it's morning." When she recalls Nenienne's words about dragons, she grins. "Yeah, they don't usually show their amusement so openly. Orrie just wears his heart on his sleeve, so to speak." That earns her another playful nudge, which only makes her chuckle a little more.
Nenienne answers ruefully, "A little too early in the morning for my own good. But at least the klah is fresh at this time of the day." She nods to Lenia, looking thoughtful but saying nothing.
"Well, he seems very kind," answers Fiala. She pushes back her hair, then looks up at the sun. "It's rest-day for me, but I think I'd best go get back instead of staying out here with naught but a shift on, hrmm?"
"Oh. Right." It's as if Lenia's just now noticing that. That's because she is. "Klah. That sounds really good." Her tone carries a bit of longing. Orralth whuffs his agreement as if he'd get some from the kitchens himself if he could. "Yeah, you probably want to put some clothes on."
Nenienne glances mournfully at her klah mug, which is now empty. "It does, doesn't it?" And then she notes to Fiala, "Yes, you probably shouldn't show up like that around Warin. He might have a heart attack."
Fiala smiles, giving a soft, sad laugh. "Yes. I think he'd be rather upset. I… I can bring some klah to you… and more, I mean, for both, anyway… once I'm dressed. But I should go now. If you don't mind." Fiala starts to turn, but still seems to wait the approval of her elders. Or perhaps betters. Or perhaps the dragonrider.
"Huh? What?" Orralth seems to be the one alerting Lenia to her role here. She's 'rider', so therefore 'ranks.' "Oh, right. Okay. That'd be really helpful, yeah. Thank you." She frowns as she looks over to Nenienne again. "Who's Warin?"
Nenienne shakes her head at Fiala's offer. "I should go get it myself — I could use the exercise." She makes a face as Lenia asks about Warin. "A candidate for the first two clutches, searched from Crom. After the hatching he stayed here and Headwoman Indira made him an assistant steward. I guess that's what he was back at the Hold, but he is all annoying."
Lenia wrinkles her nose, too. "Oh. That guy. He's annoying." She knows exactly who she's talking about, if only from reputation. "Well. I probably should go change my clothes, too." She looks down at herself, and scowls. "I'm not exactly presentable myself."
Nenienne says helpfully, "I never would have noticed, but I should go get some more klah before the rush." She gives a wave and heads off herself.