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"Oh not particularly," Vera said, helping herself to her own half of the bubbly pie. It was always pleasant to encounter politeness, wasn't it? Never mind that a good share of the population wouldn't know manners if they were hit in the head with them, bless them. "But it's pure foolishness to travel in anything else on Ista Island." Besides which, the instruments that she carried with her were quite burdensome enough without the added foolishness of skirts. "If you were asking about the color, I prefer to announce my craft where I go. I find it opens a few doors for me... and the ones that it closes I would just as soon keep closed, if you take my meaning." Smiling once more at the young lady, she brushed her hands off against each other, quite unwilling to risk berry stains on her only slightly travel stained clothes. "Ahhh, yes... white stains quite well, doesn't it?" Such a pity, that. A shame to waste perfectly good bubbly pie. "Well, no doubt his attention has been diverted by one of the attractions here. Did you know that they are to have a race?"

"I'm afraid you'd be terribly disappointed to discover that I'm the one who came up with it... this design in particular. We've always had long tunics, and pants of course, but I had a little talk with a friend of mine who has a real knack for this sort of thing. A Weaver friend, mind. In any case, you might be better off asking a tailor here if he or she can replicate the pattern! I doubt you'll want to go gallivanting off to the mainland just for this." Then again, maybe she would. "I know a Holder's mind, I do! It so happens that I am also from a small hold, and I know a thing or two about the state. Convenient, that." Vera patted at the braid that formed a crown around her head, checking to see that it had remained in place. It had. "Mm, Okassis? ... Okassis... why does that sound so familiar?" A piping young voice... a face... she couldn't quite place it!

"I am Journeyman Vera, of the Harper Hall. I've got family up in that Weyr, I'm told... perhaps it would not be a bad time to visit. We shall see." Taking the girl's hand, Vera shook it in a business-like manner, a hint of a smile on her lips. "... Okassis, a family of traders. That sounds so familiar! Where have I heard his name before?" Pursing her lips, the young woman tried to think of the connection. "No matter, I'm sure it will come to me in time. Probably too late, though." Definitely if she intended to leave after the Gather. "It's entirely possible that they have, at that." In fact, she was beginning to think that they had indeed. "It's not a difficult pattern, really... just a sleeveless tunic with some slight modifications." It would be no problem for someone to reproduce it. Ha! What an amusing thought, really. She rather liked the idea that someone else might wear a design of her own making. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Candidate Inaari."

Charming child, really. Not a child for long, if she were any judge. Inaari couldn't be much younger than thirteen, and Vera was guessing that she had a couple of Turns on that. Something about the way the girl held herself, so straight backed. "If we do run into him, I hope you will be so kind as to introduce us. I'm quite curious about the connection. I don't usually forget the faces that go along with names, you see." Which probably meant that she had been rather young when she had met the girl's friend. She nodded slightly at the mention of new riders. "As it so happens, I believe that I have the dubious fortune of being cousin to a new rider. He Impressed very recently, according to the message that I received. I have yet to see him with his dragonet." Quirking an eyebrow at the little beast, the Harper gave Ryka a steel-eyed stare, though it was somewhat softened by a smile. "Am I getting too close to your mistress, little one? How rude of me!" The little green couldn't have been long out of the egg... or else she was very tiny indeed.

((Moving Okassis and his NPC friend Jaenel back into this thread....))

There was a crash, and a clatter. Okassis hadn't been expecting to just get shoved like that. He hadn't expected anything except for the other boy to back down. He'd gone stumbling back, bowling over some poor lady who was just trying to take her Gather purchases home. He'd struck an elbow hard on the ground, and it shot pain right up to his shoulder; at the very least, though, he managed to spare himself the indignity of falling flat, catching himself on his side.

His surprise had vanished before he'd even stopped the fall, though. His gasp turned to a seethe, his palms went to fists, his wide eyes narrowed to slits. "You fardling--"

"You think you know everything, do you?" the trader youth, Jaenel, crossed his arms and snarled impressively. "Well, guess who's been the one keeping your sister company since you skipped out, huh? Think you should know better than me, what she thinks?!"

Jaenel hadn't meant that the way it sounded. Surely - surely - Jaenel hadn't meant to imply, in any way, that he'd started taking to Okassis's sister in the month or so since he'd left the caravan. They were old friends, and a sister to Okassis was just as much a sister to Jaenel, after so many years of shared exploits, failures, scoldings....

But Okassis wasn't going to reason through it. Even if he could have, he wouldn't. Jaenel had crossed the boundary from a friend in disagreement, to a loudmouthed wherry-lover that needed to be put in his place.

With a wordless shout, the infuriated Candidate launched himself at the trader, going from the ground to a tackle in a single smooth motion. The wary crowd split suddenly with gasps and shouts as the two boys went scraping to the ground, wrestling and writhing with punches and screams and exactly the sort of behavior one would expect to see out of youths half their age, and never at a Gather!

Well, it was at least something to note that everyone prettied themselves up so they could strut about like wherries whenever there was an event like this--Jiriar was both very amused, and very out of place. It wasn't to say he didn't look decent, but he had no fancy clothes or whatever the latest style seemed to be, and the boy looked almost sly as he took the time to observe the crowds. Quite frankly, he'd thought the runners had looked much better! That was where he'd spent most of the day, and he certainly didn't regret it. Animals were so much more simple than people were... but people made bubbly pies.

Humming to himself almost absent-mindedly, the lanky man wove his way through the crowd almost in time with the music he could hear playing not too far away from here. Ahh, dancing. Reminded him of the Hatching Feast, almost, and he found himself scanning the crowds in search for familiar faces. Nothing yet. But was that a crowd? And screams and gasping and what looked like two boys rolling about on the ground in desperate attempts to clobber each other senseless?

And was that Okassis?

"Shards and Shells," Jiriar muttered under his breath as he hurried towards the scene, glancing only briefly at the young woman trying to insert herself in the fray before he neatly stepped in to help her; thin, but long arms firmly tucked themselves under Okassis' and curled over his shoulders, attempting to haul him up and away from the other boy. "Easy there, easy--dunno what he did, but I could have swore I saw S'kagi around here and you really don't want to get in trouble for something stupid, eh?" He panted, struggling to keep a hold on the other if he'd even managed to pull him away at all.

Or was it? Well, that certainly wasn't his place to pry but he also couldn't just stand there and let the lad get in trouble , maybe even tossed out of the Weyr for doing this! Now, if he got his nose smashed in by the back of the boy's sharding head, then maybe he'd be feeling a little less generous.

The Candidate had the upper-hand, using his bulk and experience to get atop the trader and pin him beneath. "You miserable son of a watch-wher, don't you ever talk about my sister like that!"

Jaenel was just as hellbent on winning the fight as he was, though. The smaller boy got a fist to Okassis's left ear, sending sparks through his vision. Following up on Okassis's distraction, Jaenel managed to shove Okassis off him, one nail scratching the Candidate along the collarbone deep enough to draw red. He barely had time to get up to a crouch, though, before Okassis grabbed around his neck with an arm and slammed a fist into his kidneys. Shouting at the pain, he managed to squeeze out of the hold, shoving away from Okassis and right into some poor 5'2" Harper that was trying to mediate.

Okassis wasn't satisfied yet, either - he was scrabbling to follow, go in for the damage. He was going to make Jaenel eat those fardling words, damn it! And if someone tried to stop him---

A voice shouted behind him, someone grabbed him. He was pulling back for another punch, and his elbow went toward the unfortunate Jiriar's face before Okassis even realized that he was there.

The fuss was starting to draw more people out of the crowd, though. A handful of working folk, dressed in rough clothing and no colors, with the heavy mark purses of accomplished traders. They came quickly to help their own up, but were observing the Weyrfolk with bristles and sneers.

Bolstered by the support of his fellows, Jaenel brushed himself off and shouted, "Go run home, Weyrslaves!"

Many things happened at once. Okasiss yelled something about his sister, and a small scuffle ensued. The other youth flew back into Vera, and Inaari's concern notched up even higher. If anyone else got hurt in this sharding brawl, there would be even bigger hell to pay! For all of them at that point, not just the one involved.

Inaari had pulled off her hat and had both parcel and hat thrown carelessly on a nearby Gather stall and was going to see to Vera, when the sandy-haired trader Candidate's elbow connected solidly with Jiriar's skull. The thwack of impact was clearly heard at this distance. The blond teen nearly had a stroke at seeing this, and without thinking, rushed to her friend's side.

"Jiri! Oh Jiriar, are you ok?" She batted at him to move his hands, forgetting entirely that he was, however feebly, holding onto Okassis. "Let me look at it, make sure your eye is ok. Can you see me still?" So preoccupied she was with fussing over Jiriar like a runt chick that she didn't notice the group of hefty traders before it was too late to sneak away with the injured youth.

Hearing the shout calling them that filthy name, Inaari turned bright red under her freckles. It was something she'd hear back home, if she wasn't so carefully sheltered. Stupid, ignorant people who knew nothing about the bigger world, and could only see their corner of Pern. Had she been a boy, or perhaps somewhat more temperamental, she would have thrown herself into the fray for that comment alone! But instead, she simply looked up at the other disdainfully before turning to Jiriar once more.

Perhaps Okassis could take care of the other.