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 Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2009 6:53 pm
The Hatching would be soon. La didn't know how soon, but judging by everything going on and the signs she was slowly learning to read, it would be within the next sevenday or so. And that meant not much time to do what she had to do and prepare what she had to prepare. She had been making numbweed every morning for the past three days, preparing for the inevitable. Bandages were boiled, dried, and rolled, and La had recently managed to get Isonth to calm down from her most recent memory of the eggs long enough to explain to her that La was probably going to end up on the Sands and that if Isonth could possibly soothe agitated dragonets (AFTER they had found Theirs), she would need to do so.
And now she was taking a very brief break from Infirmary duties for food. A quick assurance to the cooks serving that the food was wonderful and she wouldn't go complaining to their superiors, and she was well-supplied with a dish of fish and tubers in some sort of gravy. Better fare than it had been recently; she wondered if the miscreants had gotten bored or just distracted with all the other drama. Didn't matter; the food looked good and La was starving.
Pausing a moment to ensure that Isonth wasn't translating La's hunger into her own and feeding out of turn, the young woman started walking again quickly enough and looked around the hall for a table occupied by someone she recognized.
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Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2009 6:59 pm
Ollen sat her head hung low into her food absent-mindedly stroking Ahoy who lay on her back in Ollen's lap. She felt as nervous as a captain sailing into stormy weather. The pending Hatching was getting to her more than she thought it would, afterall she had acted so nonchalant about coming to the Weyr.
"I don't know what I'll do little one," she mumbled with her mouthful. The taller woman had heard rumors during lessons about maiming and attacking of dragonets mixed with meanness about so-and-so will not impress. Placing another bit of food in her mouth she lifted her eyes to see the occupants of the dining hall.
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Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2009 7:07 pm
Ah, there was a face that was familiar. La smiled slightly and headed over to the other girl. And judging by where her attention fell, she had either spilled soup on her lap or was petting something curled up in it. She vaguely remembered Cordel mentioning to her that Ollen had a flitt now, in a sort of roundabout way. 'A girl who knew you came in for oil for a flitt. Tallish girl, green flitt, short hair.' Something like that. It was a nice thought.
"Ollen!" she called out with a quick wave, scooting across the crowded floor and plopping herself down at the table. "Did you spill on yourself or is that a new pet you're looking at?" she asked with a smile. She liked flitts almost as much as dragons.
Summoned by such thoughts, Menalia appeared, half-flying and half-falling in a tangle of the bandages in which he had fallen asleep. La grimaced at the little bronze and scooped him up, untangling him and dropping him onto the table beside her as he squalled for attention. "Yes, you're very handsome," she murmured before looking back up at the other girl.
"Hope you don't mind me sitting here. How are you?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2009 7:17 pm
Ollen's eyes focused on La and she perked up, it would be nice to talk to a familiar face, even if the two weren't close friends. "Hey, oh..umm.." she scooped up Ahoy she lifted her to show La. "She's a big food spill alright, she's a bottomless pit when it comes to food! Her names Ahoy."
"No, I'd be happy if you sat with me. Who's the handsome boy?" Ollen smirked, so La had a flit too, perhaps she could ask the dragonhealer's apprentice a few questions about the curious creature.
"I'm..well...terrified for the Hatching, I've never been this worried in my life. How on Pern did you stand on the sands and not be worried?"
Ahoy chirped politely her eyes swirling a slow blue. She tottered out of her human's hands onto the table toward the bronze and chirped another inquiry at him.
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Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2009 7:34 pm
"Oh, she's darling!!" La cooed, gently removing Menalia's face from her food bowl even as she leaned across the table to look at the little flitter. "Absolutely darling."
"This 'handsome boy' is Menalia," she answered with a smile, removing the flitts head again from her bowl and pushing it in Ollen's direction instead. Suddenly realizing that two pairs of eyes were on him, the little 'lizard cheeped and waddled over to Ahoy. "He's a fair mess, if I do say so myself," La went on fondly. "Needs attention from everyone all the time. Won't go away til you give it to him." She smiled indulgently at the little creature and just barely heard Isonth's mental croon of agreement.
"Prrrrrrp?" the aforementioned fair mess inquired, taking a few more steps and bumping his muzzle lightly against the green. La laughed softly and then turned back to Ollen.
"I didn't," she answered with a slightly nostalgic smile. "I was pretty fardling terrified, particularly after Haanyath had already ripped into Astri. But..." she shrugged. "You Stand for a few Hatchings and you learn that whatever happens, happens." She paused there, though, and her face grew serious. "But this time, Ollen, there's more at stake than there was at my Hatching."
"You didn't get a Touching, and there's a lot that goes on in those. It's meant to give you a chance to see the eggs and understand them. It keeps people from getting too scared. And this time around...there's a lot to be scared about." She took a break here, looking down at her food and scarfing about a third of the bowl like a starving wherry before looking back to Ollen, still serious but less famished.
"But there are some things you can still pick up now."
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Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2009 8:07 pm
"Prrrp," Ahoy answered back mimicking Menalia, "Prrrp." Ollen beamed with pride, her little green was usually quiet shy around her own kind, Ollen tried very hard to socialize and her efforts were just starting to pay off. Ahoy hopped closer to the other fire lizard.
"I want to have something like you and Isonth..and that's really my only motivation," she paused shaken by her friend's seriousness, "What should I do? I've never even witnessed a Hatching, will they really be that different and confused?"
Ollen popped a piece of fish into her mouth and chewed slowly, her eyes wide and focused on the other woman. "How and what can I pick up on?" She remembered the little 'pact' the two had made about sharing information each knew about their craft, Ollen hoped La would help.
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Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2009 8:18 pm
"Preee!" Menalia said gleefully, nuzzling the little green when she hopped closer and completely ignoring the conversation going on between the owners. He was getting attention and that was all that mattered.
"It's a wonderful thing, Impressing a dragon," La answered with a slow nod. "Probably the most wonderful thing that happens to someone who is chosen. Though that doesn't mean other wonderful things don't happen." La, for example, thought ahead to her own wild dreams of falling in love and perhaps someday walking the tables and becoming a formal dragonhealer. But she got herself back on track quickly.
"Don't be afraid of the eggs," she said, looking Ollen in the eyes with a deadly serious expression. "It's all right to be nervous, but don't flinch, don't try to run, don't try to push away a dragonet that comes uncomfortably close to you. If one runs at you, step aside slowly. Just be...slow, be careful, and don't show them fear."
She paused. "You've not been here long, but you must've had some lessons. What they tell you really is true. Be open to the dragons. Think warm things. It might not help you Impress, but it will keep your mind from being closed-off, which means you wouldn't."
She took a deep breath and paused to gulp down some more of her food. She had limited time before she needed to be back re-rolling the bandages her flitt no doubt ruined. "Don't be careless. Don't try to touch a dragon that isn't speaking to you." She shrugged.
"Use your head and don't let fear get the best of you, that's really what it comes down to." She paused and smiled, half-reaching out to touch Ollen's face in the same comforting gesture she used on some of her patients. "You'll be fine, I'm sure. You're a capable girl."
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Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2009 7:13 pm
Ahoy wriggled and nuzzled back shyly, mumbling a chirp she hoped to Ollen's bowl and snuck a piece of her fish while her human focused on Menalia's human.
Nodding along to what La was saying she mentally scolded herself, how could she let her fear get the better of her? She came here because she needed a change, well, she was changing. She inhaled and let it out slowly, calming herself. How could she let herself get so riled up?
"I have had lessons," she laughed, "I guess in my obsessing I have been ignoring what I'm told."
"So stay still and don't touch anothers' dragon, think positive happy thoughts, and if I don't move quickly and I will go in with my wits about me. Like going into a storm that has a calculated outcome," she repeated what she was thinking and the gist of what she was getting from La.
Ollen grabbed La's outstretched hand and squeezed it tightly. "T-..thank you." The candidate was not used to showing so much emotion..at least an emotion that was not anger or happiness.
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Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2009 8:07 pm
Trilling happily, Menalia nuzzled Ahoy a few times before curling up around her and staring intently at Ollen. The flitter had given him attention. Now it was time for Hers to do the same. "Preep?" he remarked curiously to Ollen, who was clearly distracted. His wings drooped a little bit, and he huffed. This would not do!
La nodded as Ollen repeated the instructions back to her. "Yep. It's easy enough when you just take a minute to calm down. Take a few deep breaths. If the oils you have for your flitt have lavender in them, you could even wear a bit of that somewhere you can smell it; lavender's calming. As is chamomile, if you have that." La's expression was still serious, businesslike, that of a healer, but that dissolved as soon as Ollen grabbed her hand. She grinned at the other girl and nodded vigorously.
"Of course. It's the least I can do. I did make a promise, after all." And she squeezed Ollen's hand back, smiling warmly into the girl's eyes.
"You'll be fine. First time's always a little bit scary, but I'm certain you'll be all right."
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 12:31 pm
"Preep?" Ahoy mimicked the bronze and poked her triangle head against him, why was he interested in her human. "Preep?" She poked him again.
Menalia and Ahoy's chirping along with feelings of agitation from the green, forced Ollen to break eye contact with La and refocus her attention on the two. "What do you lot want?" she chuckled and cautiously extended her other hand (she wasn't going to let go of La's unless she pulled away first, she needed the comfort of human contact) cautiously toward Menalia, she lightly scratched under his chin. The only bronze lizard she met was quite a grumpy boy.
"I am not sure what the oil contains, I went to Cordel and he gave me a wonderful oil. He said you made it, it smells delicious, I think that's why Ahoy likes being rubbed so much."
Ollen needed this release of sad and happy emotions she was tying herself into knots working and worrying about the hatching.
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 3:41 pm
Menalia churred happily when Ahoy continued to pay attention to him, but turned to Ollen as she extended her hand to him. Butting against her happily, he let loose with a string of pleasant trills. La laughed and shook her head. "He's a little attention-monger. He just wants everyone to know how pretty he is."
It was getting bad already, and she wasn't sure where her training had gone wrong. She managed to bring up a wonderful dragonet, why not a decent firelizard? Ah well. Problems for later.
"Oh, that oil. I remember that oil. Glad you liked it," she said with a smile. "Firelizards like being oiled in general, but some of them do like smelling nice. Greens, mostly, but I've met blues too. And Menalia." She shook her head wryly at the flitters, reaching out to scratch Menalia's head. The flitt pree'd at her, and then La turned her attention to Ahoy.
"She's adorable, you know," she said with a smile. "I'm glad you went to Cordel when you had a question; he's a wonderful dragonhealer." And a great man, but La wasn't about to explain her mancrush to someone who she...might have a chance with.
...oh, shards. La blinked in sudden surprise. Oh, was this what this was? Well...shards. Shards, shards, shards.
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Posted: Sun Jul 26, 2009 7:14 pm
That oil had probably saved Ahoy's life, Ollen wasn't very confident in her fire lizard raising she tried any training tip given her; but it still felt like she was out to sea without a paddle. She watched the little green chirp and twitter at Menalia touching her human, they were happy sounds verging on irritation.
"I think you'll be a wonderful dragonhealer," Ollen mumbled focusing on he 'lizards. "Ahoy is very shy about other flitters but she loves people of any sort, I'm trying to break her from landing on people who do not ask for her."
Ahoy seemed to know she was the topic of discussion, she started to flap her little wings back and forth and stood up straighter on her back legs. "Reeeee?" she titled her head at La and Ollen.
Ollen took her eyes off of the flits and looked over at La, she enjoyed the woman's company, she'd never had a female friend, a few people in passing, but none that stayed around long enough for her to form an attachment.
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Posted: Mon Jul 27, 2009 8:36 pm
"Thaaaanks," La said with a smile. She hoped she'd be good at dragonhealing; she was a decent healer and was learning quickly, and Cordel was an all-around good teacher. But that didn't mean she was cut out for the job, and it was quite possible that this Hatching would test her mettle as a dragonhealer more than anything up to now...mostly because nothing had happened up to now. Nothing with dragons, at least.
"The more time she spends with other flitters, the less shy she'll be," La advised absently, listening to Ollen's comments about Ahoy and laughing quietly as the little green made a noise at them. "And she's a sweetheart already, so I think she'll turn out all right." She grinned at Ollen and gently let go of her hand. That was getting weird, sorry. There was only so long La could maintain contact like that with anyone before she started to feel acutely self-conscious. Perhaps it was two years spent without all that much time to think about sex or relationships. She wasn't sure.
"So..." she said after a moment, giving Ollen a cheerful smile to indicate she was by no means trying to be rude or awkward, "you've been at the Weyr a few sevendays more now. How d'you like it?"
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Posted: Mon Aug 03, 2009 3:12 pm
Ollen gulped, she hadn't meant to make anything awkward and she felt that she had. Setting her hands in her lap she flashed a crooked smile toward La.
"Well, I'm getting used to seeing dragons, I wasn't too accustom to them before, and now they're an everyday occurrence. I like being here. I like meeting people with a similar goal and knowing that we're all in this together to make life in the Weyr wonderful," she popped another bite of her meal in her mouth to stop her babbling.
"What were your first few sevendays like in the Weyr for you?"
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Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 8:33 pm
Picking up a piece of bread, La tore the crust off it while she thought back to the six turns ago that she had come to Ista. Six turns was...a lot longer than she had realized. Shards, she was getting old! She took another few seconds to scarf down the bread and shoo away Menalia, who clearly thought he was getting some but wouldn't have liked it. Then she spoke.
"I don't even remember, really," she said with a wistful smile. "I was fourteen, and excited but sad to leave my mother and grandparents...and everything was new and different and there were so many dragons." She laughed and shook her head. "And a lot of people who weren't entirely nice." Not that she hadn't had that at the hold, but people like Z'nal and F'sey and C'ren hadn't been the norm, and it took a while to get used to the sheer volume of nasty that dragonriders were capable of putting out.
"But I met a lot of new people and that was exciting, and my first Hatching was...exciting and scary, but mostly exciting." She shrugged. "It's a little disappointing if you don't Impress the first time, but you find ways to keep yourself busy, and there's always the next time."
There was a lot of less-than-happy going around after hatchings nowadays, and it was rather depressing. People just didn't seem to bounce back the way she had when she was a child.
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