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Post by Spiffy on Oct 16, 2010 18:20:44 GMT
Kemir's strides were quick and uneven as he made his way down the caverns that twisted their way throughout the lower caverns. Chores were finally over, and he quite frankly couldn't wait to get back to the candidate barracks so that he could finally have a lie down.
He raised his hand to his forehead, rubbing it absently, wincing as the action only made it worse. He'd been plagued by an aching head for much of the day. If it weren't for the fact that he'd banged his head hard against his chest that morning he would have blamed it on the drink he'd had the night before - non-alcoholic as fitted with the candidate rules, but he'd been almost sure that someone had slipped a little something into it before he'd realised. Maybe it was the after effects of said spike that made him lose concentration that morning and bang his head.
Maybe, maybe, maybe; in truth it could have been anything. But the fact remained that a day helping out in the busy kitchens had done nothing to ease the headache, and when he'd asked for a break and explained the problem the woman who'd been put in charge of the candidates for the day had simply told him to 'man-up.' Spiteful old tunnelsnake. How he would've loved to deck her up had he possessed the will and clarity of thought to get away with it.
Something bumped hard into his side and he staggered away, cursing through gritted teeth as he lifted his hand away from his face, using his other to steady himself against the wall. He blinked, trying to see through the cloud of pain that fogged his vision just who it was that he had bumped into.
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Seraph
Betweener
"What if time is all we have?"
Posts: 56
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Post by Seraph on Oct 16, 2010 19:04:43 GMT
Maurisa was, quite simply, bored. There was only so many times one could oil a dragon before said dragon somewhat forcefuly pushed you away - leaving a nice, oil stain on your tunic shoulder to boot. There were also so many times one could check, double check, and even triple check riding gear, riding straps, and the myriad of buckles that adorned them. Zirith had rolled her eyes, and with a huff, curled her tail around herself and huddled her head under a wing, basking in the sunlight.
Leaving her rider to find something else to do, which didn't involve peeling, cutting, or in any way cooking. At least, not if the cooks wanted something edible and fit to serve at table later. She was doing the women a service by being absent, she told herself, it would only mean more work for them if they recruited Maurisa into their hectic activites.
She was nudged, physically, from this train of thought by someone walking rather hard into her side. Reeling from the unexpected collision, the greenrider caught her balance, and looked to see a dark-haired lad clinging to the wall for stability. He came out of it worse than you did, Risa. Oh, woken up, have we? He did walk into you rather hard. He had, at that. "Ach, sorry about that. Are you alright?" She looked with concern at him, figuring he was probably a candidate by the fact she didn't recognise him.
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Post by Spiffy on Oct 16, 2010 20:14:04 GMT
Finally he managed to blink away the bleariness and see the person he'd walked straight into. "Sorry..." he managed to mumble before his painfully slow brain registered who it was.
Ah shards. He'd just walked into the Weyrsinger. Ironically, one of the people in the Weyr that he'd had his aims on impressing. Thankfully, he'd rather get Impression and Weyrlinghood over and done with before he threw himself back into the world of singing. Maybe he'd just scuppered his chances. Maybe not. From whet he could remember of the Weyrsinger, she seemed a fairly good person.
Now if only he could remember her name.
"No, no, it's me who's sorry. I... I'm not quite with it today," he said, attempting a smile which still managed to form itself into a part grimace, despite his wrestling with control of it. Ah, shard his having a sore head!
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Seraph
Betweener
"What if time is all we have?"
Posts: 56
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Post by Seraph on Oct 16, 2010 20:27:42 GMT
Maurisa grinned, showing no hard feelings. "Don't worry about it, no harm done. I remember my time as a candidate - I ran into the walls, and people, pretty often, too. Seems everyone wants you everywhere at once, and there just isn't enough time in all Pern to do it."
He seemed muddled, though being on the recieving end of a candidate's roster of duty, she could appreciate the feeling. Still, he looked uncomfortable, though maybe it was just running into a dragonrider, and the Weyrsinger at that. In any case, she offered him a kindly grin and a nod. "You might know already, but it is always polite to introduce onself. I'm Maurisa, Weyrsinger and rider of Green Zirith. A pleasure to, ah, bump into you." Her eyes flickered with humour.
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Post by Spiffy on Oct 17, 2010 19:08:23 GMT
He winced again when his suspicions were confirmed as the Weyrsinger introduced herself. Maurisa, he told himself, remember that. His mind had stopped spinning quite so wildly, but there was still no guarantee that he would remember.
"It's an honour to meet you," he said with a wry grin. "Kemir, candidate and, uh..." oh he might as well say it. He was going to have to eventually. "... apprentice Harper.
(ugh icky reply D:)
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Seraph
Betweener
"What if time is all we have?"
Posts: 56
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Post by Seraph on Oct 17, 2010 20:05:32 GMT
Maurisa was about to reply when Zirith suddenly butted in with you're meeting people without me?!. She replied with a mental roll of her eyes. You know I didn't set out to do so, you woke up when he walked into me. The exchange didn't take more than a couple of seconds. She nodded when he introduced himself, her expression brightening with the mention of his apprenticeship to the Harper Hall.
"If you don't mind my asking, Kemir..." she cut off what she was going to actually inquire about - like what he'd been most proifcient in at the Harper Hall - and instead changed topic. He had seemed somewhat...reluctant to tell her about his apprenticeship. She put a curb on her curiosity, and the excietment of meeting another Harper-trained, and carried on, as if she hadn't changed tack halfway through the setance. "...are you alright? You look more dazed then simply walking into me should leave you."
((Not as icky as my post D: ))
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Post by Spiffy on Oct 19, 2010 20:11:15 GMT
Her eyes brightened as he mentioned his being a Harper. But then that was to be expected, although at least she did't frown. He didn't think she would have, but he'd seen more than a few, Harpers too, revealing looks of disapproval when he'd told them.
He would have carried on thinking like this, but the sound of her voice brought him dizzyingly back to the present.
"...Asking, Kemir..." she began, then paused, as if thinking better of what she was going to say, then continued, "...are you alright? You look more dazed then simply walking into me should leave you."
"It's nothing," he said, waving it off with his free hand. "Just a headache that I've had all day."
But was it just a headache? It could be a migraine, he supposed. At least it felt worse than the common headache did. Maybe he should be seeing the healers about it, but that meant journeying rather far in the wrong direction, and he wasn't all that far from the candidate barracks now. If he could only lie down in what he hoped would be blissful quiet then it would all be better when he woke.
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Seraph
Betweener
"What if time is all we have?"
Posts: 56
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Post by Seraph on Oct 19, 2010 21:58:16 GMT
Zirith decided to butt in at that moment with; He does look rather out of sorts. Maurisa chose not to reply, instead giving her dragon a mental nod to show she had heard. He did look worse than a candidate should, and seemed rather disorientated to boot. She dug into her memories, yes, she had felt tired as a candidate, but she never felt how Kemir looked.
The greenrider looked at him seriously, concern in her eyes. He had said he was alright, but she wasn't convinced. "Are you sure? Do you need any help getting back to the barracks? Don't be too proud to say 'yes' - we need healthy candidates."
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Post by Spiffy on Oct 20, 2010 18:46:48 GMT
She eyed him seriously when he admitted to the headache, as if examining him. But she wasn't a healer, so could she really tell f there was something wrong with him, other than the way he was acting of course?
"Are you sure? Do you need any help getting back to the barracks? Don't be too proud to say 'yes' - we need healthy candidates."
"I'm fine, I just need a lie down," he replied, managing to sound more nonchalant that he felt. Taking a breath he pushed himself lightly away from the wall so that he was standing. He tried to smile encouragingly, but as he took a step backward to correct his tilting balance it ended in a stagger, causing him to fall back against the wall again.
"Though maybe turning up to the hatching with a broken bone isn't the best idea," he conceded with a grimace.
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Seraph
Betweener
"What if time is all we have?"
Posts: 56
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Post by Seraph on Oct 20, 2010 21:14:19 GMT
She winced in sympathy as Kemir staggered back against the wall after trying to stand up. He really didn't look too good - maybe she should ask the Healer to look in on him once she helped him back to the barracks? Zirith seconded that notion, adding that it would also give the Healer something to do other than worry.
Maurisa gave the candidate a wry smile and she offered him her shoulder to lean on the rest of the way. "It would be best not to, yes. It would make it rather awkward to don the robe, and to care for any dragonet you may Impress." She hoped that she wasn't coming across as too nosy, or intrusive, but she couldn't have just walked away after seeing him so dizzy. Besides, it also gave her something creative to do with her time. Add to that she got to meet one of the candidates, and there wasn't really anything else she'd rather do.
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Post by Spiffy on Oct 21, 2010 15:49:17 GMT
He sighed. Now she was probably going to insist that he see a healer. He didn't need one though! He'd be fine. Surely?
He pushed himself away from the wall again, gingerly this time, accepting her offered shoulder to lean on. Thankfully this time he didn't lurch anywhere, and neither did he lean on her too hard at first.
"They probably wouldn't even let me stand, let alone care for a dragonet," he agreed. They started off down the corridors toward the barracks, Kemir leaning slightly on Maurisa's shoulder, the pressure increasing slightly every now and again as the walls blurred either side of him. He took a breath, about to say something, then thought better of it. He'd sound stupid. Instead he continued on in silence, hoping that she hadn't noticed.
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Seraph
Betweener
"What if time is all we have?"
Posts: 56
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Post by Seraph on Oct 21, 2010 18:45:45 GMT
Maurisa showed no outward sign of strain or any sign of discomfort as Kemir leaned on her shoulder - he wasn't that heavy, and he managed to walk mostly under his own power. Her face showed no expression that would lead anyone watching to think there was anything out of the ordinary happening. Some Dragonriders might look down on any non-rider, but Maurisa was one of the riders that took her duty to serve Pern in such a way that she would gladly help anyone.
They walked for a bit, Kemir starting to lean more heavily on her shoulder every now and then. For the talkitive, nosy Weyrsinger, the silence was stretching on for far too long. Though she sensed he didn't want to talk about it, she also knew that a thought left unsaid could fester. So, she decided she might as well try and help....while also saiting her curiosity. Mostly helping, though. "So, how did you end up at the Harper Hall, if you don't mind me asking. I was born there - my father was a Master - and I was apprenticed soon as I was old enough, mainly to stop me pestering my parents for lessons." she laughed lightly.
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Post by Spiffy on Oct 21, 2010 20:41:04 GMT
The silence stretched on uncomfortably, like neither of them could quiet think of anything to say, or felt awkward disturbing the silence. But then:
"So, how did you end up at the Harper Hall, if you don't mind me asking. I was born there - my father was a Master - and I was apprenticed soon as I was old enough, mainly to stop me pestering my parents for lessons."
Well at least someone had plucked up the courage to talk. True he didn't mind silences, and often took a step back from a conversation just to observe others in their ways, but this situation was a little different. It felt odd not talking.
And even if Harpering wasn't something he particularly wanted to talk about just then, at least it was something he could talk about. His past, however, was a bit of a touchy subject.
"My father was a harper too, though I didn't grow up in the Hall, " he admitted, deliberately being vague. "Joined because I had a good singing voice, but then I was searched before I completed my apprenticeship," he finished, hoping that she wouldn't probe too much more into it. "What was it like, growing up in the Hall?" he asked instead, trying to steer the conversation away from himself, hoping that Maurisa was one of those people that could talk for hours about their own past without prompting.
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Seraph
Betweener
"What if time is all we have?"
Posts: 56
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Post by Seraph on Oct 22, 2010 13:26:21 GMT
She knew when she was being distratced from a sore topic, so she took said conersational detour in stride. With enough perseverance, she'd get the full story out of him eventually. The Weyrsinger had patience tempered by experience when it came to gathering tidbits of information - if she left it now, when Kemir was so obviously reluctant to talk about it, maybe in future he would feel more comfortable about talking to her, and voluntarily tell his life story. If she pushed it now, she might loose that chance, and alienate him from her for good. So, she took the long-view, and decided to tell him her story, what there was of it. Besides, she could talk for hours on whatever topic someone gave her - provided she had an audience. Hey, I listen when you talk! I know, love, but sometimes you drift off. It's rather harmful to a Harper's ego to have their listener snore halfway through an anecdote. Zirith mulled this over, and then said, in a somewhat small voice. That only happened once. It had been a long day. I was tired. Maurisa decided to let Zirith have the last word, before her silence dragged on for too long.
She gathered her thoughts before she answered - she honestly hadn't thought about life at the Hall for Turns. "It was always busy, always something going on. Some would call it chaotic, but it was an organised chaos. I remember there were always people coming and going, Journeymen leaving on assignments, Journeymen returning, and all the stories they had to tell about it, too. They'd gather the children round, and tell them all about the Holds they had been too, and all the things they had done. It was a much a part of my learning as any of my classess, listening to the Journeymen. It was like...seeing your lessons in practise." She paused, thinking some more, before smling with an obvious pride. "And then, when I became a Journeyman, it was in fact the day after I walked the tables, I was Searched. The Masterharper was rather irate that I chose that time to answer another calling. I was taken to Igen Weyr, where, obviously, I Impressed Zirith. I decided to appease my Master by becoming the Weyrsinger." She chuckled, knowing she was babbling on, but not really caring. The silence had gotten awkward, and he had asked, after all. Maybe it would set him more at ease? She didn't know, but she didn't much want to go into her move West - that path led to Basilisks. Her scarred leg twinged, almost as if thinking about the attack resonated within it somehow.
"So, what colour do you hope to Impress on the sands?" She asked, no hint of judgement or the like in her tone, just a plain, curious question.
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