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 Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 9:24 am
It was late afternoon, and baking hot. Lessons had been almost unbearable, so many humans and dragons crowded together to be taught the basics of what they would need to know in order to become fully fledged wingriders. Now at least there was a more pleasant task to see to, and a chance to escape the madness of the crowds inside. C'mor waded into the lake, choosing to keep his clothes on. When he came out again, they would keep him cool for a little while at least.
"Come on then, let's get you clean," he said aloud as Naedreth trotted into the water, and waded over to nudge him affectionately.
"We did well today Mine," he commented in a satisfied tone as his rider set about scrubbing his hide. "I am glad lessons are over though even if we are very good at them, I have been looking forward to this all day! I itch, Mine."
C'mor chuckled and nodded, scratching his lifemate's face affectionately. "Of course you do, you're growing fast! You'll feel better for a while after this and a good oiling though." He was amazed by how swiftly Naedreth was getting larger; knowing the rate young dragons grew was one thing, but it was quite another seeing it up close. Already Reneneth dwarfed her clutchmates, and both Uktenath and his own dear Naedreth looked massive compared to the others when the young queen wasn't around. It wouldn't be all that long before Naedreth was taller at the shoulder than he was at the head!
"That is quite a strange thought," Naedreth said thoughtfully, "but I know it will seem normal when it does happen. Soon too Mine, we will all begin to gain the grace and full beauty of our kind! Already Reneneth and some of the greens are quite elegant when they walk... Oh Mine! When you have finished scrubbing me you must scrub Gilden as well, that will make her happy."
C'mor grinned, turning his head to see the golden flitt playing in the water a little way off. "Good idea, and once you're oiled I'll do her as well," he said with a nod before setting about his task in earnest once more; the sooner Naedreth was comfortable again the happier he would be.
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Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 10:08 am
Kella was unhappy, to say the least. the nearly 16-turn-old girl had been roped, once again, into taking out the trash from the kitchens. On a day as warm as this, it smelled disgusting Kella scowled as she dragged out the large bins used for throwing away anything from scraps, to broken cutlery and dishes, and everything in-between. Her dark eyes were heavy, eyebrows scrunched together as she frowned fiercely.
"This bites," she growled as she lugged the heavy bin alongside her. Kella had gone through a semi-recent growth spurt, and her long limbs looked inadequate to heft such a heavy load. She didn't seem like she was having too much trouble, but only because Kella was too proud and stubborn to seem weak in any way.
The route from the kitchens to the huge compost heap/dumpster-area took Kella by the lake. She was immediately envious of those able to shirk away from their chores and responsibilities to swim. Her eyes narrowed (and darkened, if possible) as she watched one weyrling pair frolicking so languidly. She paused, letting herself rest for a moment. Not only was she envious of the pair's ability to take time for themselves- Kella was jealous of the bond they shared. The young woman had stood for a few clutches, yet here she was, a simple kitchen drudge left to the chores the cooks refused to do themselves.
So engrossed in watching the bronze dragon and its rider, Kella stood transfixed for several lengthy moments. A shout from the general area of the kitchens startled her back into reality, and taking up the heavy chore, she returned to her dragging.
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Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 10:26 am
"Look Mine, that girl is looking at us!" Naedreth informed his rider, his mental voice cheerful but unsurprised. Of course she was looking at them; Naedreth and C'mor were the best after all! "She has stopped doing her work to look at us Mine."
C'mor turned to look in the same direction as his lifemate; he had not yet learned the trick of borrowing the young bronze's eyes. It would be a while before they learned that, he was told, but he looked forward to it a great deal; where Naedreth no doubt saw the girl clearly, he saw only a small figure. "That looks like a lot of work for one person," he said to his dragon, squinting over at Kella. "Would you like to swim for a while? She looks as though she could use some help."
Naedreth puffed up his chest, and his eyes swirled a happy green. "Of course Mine! I can wait a little while for more scrubbing if somebody needs your help. We should always do our best to help others!"
C'mor grinned and slapped his dragon's shoulder. "Right," he said aloud with a nod, "I won't be long." Naedreth rumbled his acknowledgment, and C'mor turned to wade back out of the water before striding over to the laden girl. Closer too, it seemed she was lugging rubbish; he'd always hated getting that task, especially when it was as hot as this.
"Hi there," he said with a smile as he drew closer. "Would you like some help there?" Ah, he recognized her now; a weyrbrat about a turn younger than himself. He couldn't remember ever having a proper conversation with her before, but he was fairly sure of her name. "Kella, right?" She was a loud girl from what he'd seen, maybe a bit of a trouble maker, but lugging rubbish around was horrible and he was willing to help her get it done more quickly no matter what type of person she was. Besides, he didn't actually know her; she could well be very decent and hard working deep down, just resentful of menial work perhaps.
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Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 10:53 am
Through narrowed eyes, Kella realized that the bronze and his rider were watching her. "Shards," she said and rolled her eyes. She really didn't want company now, not with the ripe, pungent odor of garbage hanging around her. Not to mention, Kella was slightly afraid she might say something particularly nasty at him. Not for any reason other than she was grumpy!
Kella focused on her task, concentrating her attention on not appearing weighed down or overwhelmed. The sun shining down strongly overhead made Kella sweat, despite the fact her hair was closely-cropped to her head, dark brown and tightly curled. Her short-sleeved shirt was of a light fabric, and a very light-green, but had been pulled up over her stomach and twist-tied. Kella also wore dark-brown shorts and comfortable sandals which provided hardly any traction.
The girl paused and looked up, somewhat hunched over the heavy bin. She spied the young rider coming towards her, and for a millisecond, she panicked. Her stomach flip-flopped, and she protested being seen in such a helpless state. Just drop the trash and run! Her mind screamed wildly, but Kella grabbed a hold of herself in a very quick time. While she didn't want to appear weak, neither did she want to appear easily-startled. So, she stood her ground.
While waiting for the rider to complete his approach, Kella stood up straight and put all her weight to one side, so her hip stuck out. She thought it was a very intimidating pose. "Hello," she greeted him in return, neither warm nor cold. She was slightly surprised when he correctly remembered her name, but recovered quickly. "I don't need help," she assured him, her tone hardening. "Its a bit heavy, but its my chore- I can do it, thank you," she finished awkwardly.
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Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 11:18 am
C'mor smiled and nodded, stepping back a bit to give her more room to swing the bags around. "Okay, I just thought I'd offer; it's not a nice job to get at the best of times, but especially not on a day like today." She seemed a bit annoyed, maybe even embarrassed at his offer. He supposed he might be a bit peeved at somebody implying, or seeming to imply, he couldn't do the tasks assigned to him.
"Sorry," he went on with a slight grin. "I didn't come over because I thought you couldn't manage, just like I say because I know it isn't very nice." True he could do it more easily than she, but he hadn't thought that Kella was actually incapable... He wasn't sure what else to say exactly now. She might well have more chores to get to in any case. Egh. Small talk was not his strong point.
"She would love to come and meet me, I'm sure!" Naedreth told his rider happily. "I would quite like to meet her as well; I won't remember her in a few days but when I see her again I will be able to quickly find out from you who she is. I think it is important that you and I know as many people as possible Mine, if we are to be leaders one day we must know who is following us after all!"
Oh dear. Naedreth was... was... C'mor grinned slightly and shook his head. Impossible, but wonderful. He looked a long way ahead, and with such complete confidence! It was reassuring in a way, but sometimes the amount of ego just made him want to bash his head against a wall in frustration. "If you don't have any more chores right now, Naedreth over there says he's like to meet you," he said, turning his smile to Kella. That had been a better way to put it than how his dragon had, he felt.
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Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 11:29 am
Kella eyed C'mor, looking up and down once. Slowly. She sighed softly, and forced herself to relax. It was her standoff-ish nature that she was trying to change, honest! "Well, thank you for offering," she said, considerably lighter in tone than she had been initially. She giggled and bobbed her head at his observation of drawing one to the nastier chores. "That's very true," she remarked, meeting his gaze levelly. "It smells so much worse when its hot!" She complained, dramatically altering her expression to one of disgust.
C'mor's apology softened Kella even more, but by no means was she done being defensive. "While its not the greatest chore to do, especially today... What chore is fun? Somebody has to do 'em," she replied with a shrug of her shoulders. Kella shifted her weight, and crossed her arms over her chest. "So, you know my name, but I can't remember yours. Conmor? Con.. Something," she gave up, frustrated, waggling her fingers irritably. "So, what is your name?" She inquired. It was only fair!
Before he could answer her query, the young rider relayed a message from his dragon. Kella's eyebrows immediately shot up in a mixture of confusion and suspicion. "He wants to meet me? Why?" She demanded, her tone hardening again. "I'm no one interesting," she said, waving her hand dismissively. She had chores to do, and couldn't dawdle. She'd been reprimanded rather severely, and recently too, for standing around, slacking.
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Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 11:40 am
C'mor wrinkled his nose. "Yes, as chores go, this one stinks. I was Conomor before, C'mor now though; nice to meet you... I mean we've lived in the same place all our lives but hey, can't talk to everyone, right?" What reason should he give for Naedreth wanting to meet her? He didn't want to be false, hated even bending the truth slightly, but he wasn't sure he wanted to reveal the full scale of his lifemate's pride. Honesty, but with the 'we will one day practically rule the world Mine' bit cut out.
"He's pretty well intent on meeting as many people as possible," C'mor said after glancing back over at the young bronze, who was swimming about in the shallows happily. "He thinks it's important for him and me to meet a lot of people... Guess he's right," C'mor said thoughtfully before chuckling at himself. "I've always been a bit of a recluse, nose stuck in a scroll. Probably why we haven't properly met before, I was always either doing chores or in the records."
Naedreth was right, not because they would become leaders one day, although they might and he hoped they did... It was important just because... because it was. Knowing people meant that you knew the Weyr, and if you knew the Weyr then you knew what it needed, and even if you were never a leader you could do small things to make it a better place. Like, perhaps, if you knew a slightly defensive girl she'd let you help her with her chores where she wouldn't accept help from a relative stranger.
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Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 12:19 pm
Kella had to admit, grudgingly, that C'mor had a point. It could always be helpful to have a wide range of friends an acquaintances, if one ever needed specialized assistance of skills. "Conomor.. C'mor. Right! I knew that," she assured him with a laugh. She was beginning to loosen up around the young rider. It didn't take her long to transform from slightly-defensive and bossy to friendly and easy-going. She just had to feel completely comfortable, and at-ease. Lucky for C'mor, he seemed harmless enough.
His name sounded familiar; it rung a bell in the recesses of her mind, where Kella tucked little tidbits, names, and faces that might be useful later, rather than when she learned them. "Oh, well if you've lived here your whole life, I've obviously seen you around," she said matter-of-factly, uncrossing her arms from over her chest. "I've been here my whole life, so it'd be impossible for us to have never run into one another," she surmised and nodded her head, happy with her explanation.
She glanced to the lake where the young rider's bronze waited for her. She'd met several dragons face-to-face before, but it was always a slightly uncomfortable thing for her. Kella didn't fully understand the rider-dragon bond, and she very much wanted to. But, having been left standing several times, the young woman was slightly wary of any dragon. She eventually shrugged, and waved a hand dismissively at the trash. "It can wait," she said, wrinkling her nose in distaste. Kella looked up and met C'mor's gaze, then gestured towards the lake. "If he wants to meet me, I can't really say no!"
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Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2009 1:05 pm
C'mor smiled and nodded. "Right, we must have done at some point, albeit briefly." He was glad to turn and walk away from the rubbish, and if it was bad now it must have been terrible at midday. He was glad, too, that he didn't have to do jobs like that anymore, none of the tasks he needed to do these days were half as bad. They weren't bad at all actually, because all of them were centered around Naedreth It helped that Veyes had shown him how to butcher meat before he'd Impressed; he had a feeling that would have been hard the first time without prior experience...
Veyes. He was quite sad he'd lost him as a friend but he didn't know how to go about forgiving him for what he had done. Not only had he stolen, but he had betrayed the trust of the kitchen staff, his friends. He couldn't understand how anyone could even contemplate such an act... but now was not the time to think about that. For now, he got to introduce Kella to Naedreth! He might not be full of verbal boasts like the bronze himself, but as any rider he was convinced that his lifemate was the greatest dragon ever to live. At the edge of the lake, C'mor paused; the young bronze was making his way out to meet them.
"Please tell her that I say hello, Mine," Naedreth said as he sat down on the shore and rumbled at Kella in a friendly manner. "Tell her also that I think she has very lovely eyes."
Erp. He'd never complimented a girl on anything before. Ah well, no big deal, and it wasn't even coming from him... They were quite nice eyes though. "He says hello," C'mor said with a smile and a nod to emphasis his words. "He also says that you have lovely eyes." If she took it as though the compliment was from him... Well that was alright, it was true after all and there was nothing wrong with saying something that was true.
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Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 6:42 am
Kella was also relieved to be rid of the disgusting-smelling trash. She knew how much worse the stuff would smell within only a few minutes longer out under the hot sun. Thankfully, though, Kella had an excuse to walk away from it! Even though he was only a weyrling, C'mor still outranked Kella. She could always twist what happened and use it as an explanation for slacking off if any of the other kitchen workers tried to reprimand her [which happened often enough that Kella instinctively worked up stories to avoid serious punishment].
It was not like Kella tried to piss people off. It just sort of... happened. Kella was somewhat of an impulsive, loud-mouthed young woman- and trouble seemed to find her wherever she went. Even if she started off with the best of intentions, she would more often than not end up with a lecture and the most unpleasant chores available. Add the fact that Kella was easy to anger, and did not know when [or how] to keep her thoughts to herself. It wasn't surprising that Kella was the one stuck with trash-duty today. Scratch that, Kella thought with an angry frown. She had to take out the trash every day this sevenday! Ugh. Gross.
But today was turning out to be MUCH better than she had anticipated! Why, there in front of her was a pretty cute boy, and his bronze. Despite the fact Kella had never really had any serious interest in the other species [boys, duh] before- she definitely noticed C'mor. Right here, right now was when and where her hormones decided to kick in. A blush crept up her cheeks, though it was hardly visibly underneath her dark skin. She grinned in a silly way, waggling her fingers towards Naedreth.
"Um, should I curtsy or bow or something?" She asked C'mor quietly, leaning close to the young rider. When she had been younger and introduced to dragons, Kella had hardly been aware of courtesy and good manners- she had just been overjoyed at meeting a dragon!
But before C'mor could answer her question, he relayed a message from his bronze. Which... sort of left Kella wide-eyed and slightly open-mouthed. She'd never been called pretty before, or even been told she had pretty features. In her childhood, Kella had been the slightly-pudgy, brat who was always smudged with dirt and mud- not exactly conducive to being 'pretty'. So, she was flabbergasted, to say the least. Kella did turn her gaze to C'mor for a brief moment, one eyebrow slightly raised as she scrutinized him. Did Naedreth really say it... or is he just using his bronze as a scapegoat? Kella wondered, then dismissed the idea. Who cared?
"Well, umm... uh, tell him I said thank you? And tell him that he is the most handsome bronze I've ever seen," Kella added quickly, deciding that stroking the young dragon's ego couldn't be harmful.
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Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 7:06 am
Naedreth crooned happily at the compliment, and his eyes whirled a brighter green for some moments. "I like this one Mine! Oh do tell her she shouldn't bow though, I don't think anyone should go around bowing unless it's to a queen on the sands!" It was nice to be complimented, even when you already knew you were great! Everybody liked to be complimented, even if they wouldn't admit it.
C'mor smiled at Kella and shook his head. "No, no need for anything like that. He'd probably appreciate a scratch behind his left headknob though, he has an itch. Oh, he says thank you for the compliment too."
"I do?
"Yes you do."
"Right, then I say thank you to her! You're right, I shouldn't forget my manners Mine."
Well, that was sorted then; good. Hopefully Naedreth's itch would soon be as sorted as his manners. C'mor remembered well that before he'd become a rider he had loved any chance to touch a dragon. Kella might not be the same as him, but hey; the offer was there if she wanted to take it, and if not he could get the itch himself in a moment. It was still a little odd - and yet not odd at all - to be able to tell exactly where Naedreth wanted to be rubbed, scrubbed, oiled, or stroked. It was like knowing where he himself had an itch but... different. Distinctly dragonish, and dragonish was something he knew he wouldn't ever be able to explain. Any other rider would understand though, but trying to describe dragonishness was like trying to describe the colour blue to a person who had been born blind. Not only did the blind person have no point of reference, but you just didn't know where to start. Blue was blue, and dragonish was dragonish... Possibly draconic, actually; that sounded better.
A squeak caught C'mor's attention then, pulled him out of pondering draconic/draonish things, and he turned to see Gilden flitting out of the water towards him. The sleek golden flitt landed lightly on her accustomed perch, his right shoulder, and chirruped a friendly greeting at Kella -new friend?- she wondered with her little picture thoughts and projected feelings.
C'mor chuckled and tickled the damp flitt under the chin. "This is Gilden," he said to Kella, "she'd like to be friends as well." This social encounter was going better than any he'd had in a while. Before the hatching he'd been one of those in disgrace over the lake incident, and hadn't had the time or the will to seek out conversation. Since the hatching, well, he'd been rather busy seeing to Naedreth' needs. It wasn't that he minded, not at all, but it was still nice to actually talk to another human again.
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Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 9:51 am
Naedreth's croon brought not just a smile, but a grin to Kella's face. The girl lit up! His happy croon made her feel so warm and good! She looked to C'mor, the grin widening as he suggested that she scratch behind the bronze's headknob instead of bowing. "I thought they liked that whole pulling-rank-thing," the young woman stated simply.
She stepped closer to Neadreth. Not quite close enough to crowd him, but close enough so that she could reach out and touch him. Her fingers curled to cup the tip of Naedreath's headknob, then straightened out to slide underneath and down to the base where it met the bronze's neck. Kella kept her fingernails short, so she wasn't so much scratching as she was rubbing- but she hoped Naedreth liked it anyway!
A squeak also caught Kella's attention, surprising since she was becoming quite enthralled with Naedreth. His hide was so soft! Her hand had moved and was rubbing all up and down the bronze's neck, though she was careful not to hurt herself on his sharp neck ridges. Her gaze was drawn to C'mor, and the gold firelizard perched on his right shoulder. Kella was surprised, certainly! Her eyes widened, and she had to admit she felt a little twang of jealousy. A dragon AND a firelizard? Man, this kid was lucky!
She smiled warmly towards him though, and then shifted her attention to Gilden. "Well, nice to meet you!" She said to the queen-in-miniature. It was rare that Kella ever spoke to anyone so easily, and so freely. It was nice, she realized as she sat with Naedreth, to have someone to call a friend. Seeing as it was the only lengthy conversation they'd ever had, though, Kella was on the fence about whether or not C'mor was a friend- or they just happened to be enjoying each other's company this once, out of coincidence.
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Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 10:15 am
Naedreth crooned again as Kella began to scratch him, the vocalization turning to a deep happy rumble as she found the itch. "Niiiiice," he told C'mor happily, although of course His could tell he was enjoying the attention. "She does not have long claws like some human females do," he added after a moment, "that is good; I think those might hurt!"
"Nails," C'mor corrected, "but that is good!" He hadn't considered that she might do, and though he suspected that long nails wouldn't actually hurt a dragon's skin he was happy to avoid chancing it. Naedreth being hurt was the last thing in the world he wanted; the very thought was almost enough to make him physically balk.
"Some dragons are," C'mor said after a moment with a grin, "but Naedreth thinks everyone's pretty much the same; greens to golds, and dragons to humans. And flitts," he chuckled as Gilden nudged his face. "He does think he's a rather excellent," he added with a wry smile, "but he'd rather have friendship and affection than people bowing to him just because he happens to be amazing."
"Well yes, it's no fun if everyone is too intimidated by you to talk to you," Naedreth told his seriously. "It is important to remain approachable! If you are not approachable, you are lonely, and you lose touch with what it is that people want and need; that is not a good thing for a leader to do."
C'mor sent a feeling of agreement to his lifemate and sat down on the grass with a sigh. "I hope this heatwave ends soon," he commented, feeling hot again already despite his damp clothes. "It's making us humans sluggish and the dragons lazy!" He hoped the flu, or whatever it was, went away soon too. The longer it lasted, the more likely he was to get ill, and if he was ill he wouldn't be able to look after Naedreth!
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Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2009 8:34 am
Kella giggled as Naedreth began to rumble. She could feel it! Her fingers tickled as the bronze rumbled happily. She looked up at C'mor, her eyes wide and giddy. "I guess he likes that," she stated rather proudly. She was quite pleased with herself. Knowing how pleased Naedreth was by what she was doing, Kella's ego swelled slightly.
"That's a really good way to look at things," Kella agreed with C'mor and the bronze. It wasn't usually the way Kella though; the girl stood atop a pedestal. Well, in her mind. But as she'd aged, her views had slowly begun to change. She could see some sense in their opinion, and had to agree with it. "Respect is just as important as friendship and affection, though," Kella had to argue with the one thing she disagreed on. She didn't think that respect necessarily went hand-in-hand with intimidation or fear.
Kella was already crouched down by Naedreth, so C'mor sitting on the grass put him at eye-level with the young woman. She sent a smile his way, a brief one, and turned back to watch Naedreth as she rubbed his neck. "I don't mind the heat," Kella stated simply. "I never really notice it. Y'know, having lived in it my whole life," she said and shrugged, glancing over her shoulder at the young bronze rider. "Does it really bother you?" She asked him, a tad bit unbelieving of his statement. He said he'd lived at the Weyr his whole life, so why wasn't he used to the weather like she was?
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Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2009 8:56 am
C'mor smiled and gave a slight shrug. "Not all that much," he said, answering her question about the heat first as he was still pondering how to respond to the other. "I can deal with it, but I do prefer the cooler months myself... I agree," he added after a moment or silence. "Respect is important, if you've earned it then you deserve to be treated respectfully. I have never... Mmm," he scratched his chin, pausing as he looked for the right words again. "I have never felt that... I don't know," he gave a shrug, "I can deal with bowing to superiors if they want it but I don't think I should like it if anyone bowed to me. A respectful tone, respectful treatment, but..." He shrugged again and shook his head with a grin. "I can't put my finger on it, but something about the idea of people bowing to me doesn't sit right, and I suppose either Naedreth just feels the same or he's picked it up from me."
"I wouldn't really mind people bowing," the young bronze told his rider, "so long as people aren't rude to me I don't mind either way though, so if you don't like it I won't encourage it." Still rumbling, the dragonet sat down in the grass, keeping his head well without scratching-range; he was enjoying this!
C'mor nodded to his dragon. "Thanks." Then, to Kella; "He says that it doesn't bother him, but he's happy to accommodate my strange quirks." It was a bit of an odd thing, he supposed. It would be more understandable if he had a pet hate for bowing in general, but it was strange that only the idea of people bowing at him at some hypothetical point in the future perturbed him. "If I'm ever some big important man of station," he said with a wry grin, "I'd much prefer a salute or something. I've rambled a bit much about all this now," he added, grin going apologetic, "I have a tendency to think a lot about everything, let me know if me doing it aloud gets boring."
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