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 Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2009 6:55 pm
Nandeli was on the prowl again.
With new candidates being flown in every day for the clutch it was getting harder and harder to meet them all. She hardly got to know a few before some others she hadn't met were causing trouble. It just wasn't fair! How was she supposed to be in charge of the Weyr gossip if she didn't even know the names of the people she was talking about? That was why today it was her mission to find at least one person she didn't know and totally accost them. I mean, be very friendly and talk to them. That was it.
So, there she was, perched on the end of one of the tables, waiting. She'd managed to secure herself a small plate of pancakes and was working her way through them as she watched. Somebody would be here that she hadn't met, and when she saw them....
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Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2009 7:27 pm
Kiriwar always ended up at the dining hall, because everyone ended up at the dining hall and it was the best way to meet someone new. He hummed softly as he stepped in, eager to get some bread and klah to relax and have a good bout of conversation. The Vintner stretched long arms over his head for a moment as he walked in, before shifting to undo the tie in his hair, letting his near-curls fall loose around his neck.
Immediately, he went for the klah and gave in to picking up some soup with his bread, setting it on a plate and making his way to a table, looking for any new faces.
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Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2009 5:45 pm
Aha! She found one! The Nose chewed thoughtfully on her fork as she surveyed her chosen one. He was nice enough looking, she decided. A little on the cute side, but who didn't like cute boys? And he looked friendly, which was an added bonus. That meant she could jump him without worrying about being attacked by fists or tongue. It had happened enough times for her to be watchful.
"You!" Nandeli announced, pointing her fork at Kiriwar when he drew closer. "I've found you! Jeeze, were you avoiding me or something? Honestly, I swear all these new candidates never even come over and say hello. The nerve!" She gestured to the seat next to her and beckoned Kiriwar over to come and sit. It was pretty clear that she wouldn't take no for an answer. "But I forgive you, of course, since you probably didn't know about how things work here, so I can't be mad at you for too long. But you have to tell me everything about yourself! And if you hold back I'll make sure to check up on you and then you'll be sorry~" She grinned broadly as she waggled a finger at him.
"I'm Nandeli, by the way."
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Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2009 6:41 pm
Kiriwar heard someone speak and quickly turned his head, blinking owlishly at the girl pointing her fork in his direction, before quickly bringing up his most charming smile to hopefully disarm any potential fights. When she continued, he had to laugh, shaking his head a few times, then moved to sit on the chair beside the girl. As he set down his plate and settled beside her, her let Nandeli talk, brown eyes glittering with mirth. He did love a fiery conversation-companion, and this girl fit the bill wonderfully.
"My most sincere and honorable apologies, missus. I never meant to avoid you, or deprive you of my presence," he said once she was done, before he offered a long-fingered hand to her, his smile ever-charming and his gaze ever-kind. "I would be known as Kiriwar, the apprentice Vintner too old for his rank and also nearly too old to be a Candidate, but here I am. But, missus, I'm afraid I wouldn't know where to start if I just told you everything, because I'm missing a few of my younger years -- my memory just doesn't go back that far, you know? -- so perhaps you could ask me some questions?"
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Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2009 7:22 pm
So far so good. The young man had willingly taken a seat next to her and he was still smiling despite her initial 'attack' on his person. Excellent. Nandeli loved it when her information gathering went smoothly. As fun as it was to try and figure things out secretly, she preferred the direct approach. Let them know what you wanted, they gave it to you, and you proceeded to figure out every possible romantic interest they could have in the Weyr. It had worked for Nan for years so why change now?
"I'm glad you weren't avoiding me, Kiriwar. I would have to be very sad." Her mock-pout changed to a smile when he offered her his hand, which she shook firmly. He had such long fingers that she might have originally placed him as a Harper, or perhaps a craft that was a little more delicate than wine-making. Still, she supposed that being a Vintner may have suited him. Something off the beaten track, so to speak.
Her grin widened when he put the ball back in her park. "Oh of course! I shan't ask you to remember anything from your earliest childhood! That would be unfair, not to mention I don't think you'd like to tell me about your adventures as a young lad, toddling about in a Hold. But none of that. You're a Vintner apprentice then, from the Hold I presume? Searched by what colour? I'll bet it was a green. You look like the kind of boy greens favour above others. But that's not to say you're like that, though if you are that's okay too. I don't judge, believe me." She raised her hands, palms up, though her grin looked cheeky. "Tell me about your Hold too. I like hearing about Hold life."
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Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2009 8:20 pm
Kiriwar was fascinated by how suddenly someone wanted to know so much about him. She had nearly pounced on him when he planned on just eating and watching, maybe grab a bit of light conversation, and seized him to interrogate about every detail of his life. Yet, he was not upset -- rather, it was nice to have someone want to know so much about him. The Vintner smiled broadly and picked up a bite of bread so he could eat as they talked about his life and who he was. "Well, Hold life was very simple to me. I have a Ma and a Da, and two brothers, who were little to nothing like me. I was very close to my father, though. He taught me the craft of wine-making."
He shrugged, sipping at his Klah, before looking up at Nandeli thoughtfully. "Oh, you're not offending me about that, missus. I am that way. I prefer that... company of men, so it's all right. But... really, there was not much interesting about my Hold life. It was simple and sweet, and I... I personally don't remember what color I was searched by, to be honest," he said, lowering his gaze a little. "I was just so amazed that I was searched at all. I'm nineteen turns, missus, so I'm only a few turns off from being too old for the Searching. You understand, yes?"
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Posted: Wed Apr 08, 2009 9:28 am
The Nose nodded encouragingly as Kiriwar spoke, soaking it all in like a dry sponge. Holder, two brothers nothing like him, father was the wine-maker. Got it. “Older brothers or younger?” Hold family life always interested her, especially the dynamics of a family. Here in the Weyr, children were under the care of Foster mothers who were chosen to best suit their personality. She had been very surprised to hear that it didn’t work that way in real life.
Nan’s eyes lit up when Kiriwar admitted he swung ‘that way’. Oooh excellent! Another one! “Well I’m glad I didn’t offend you, my good sir. But you don’t have to call me missus! You make me feel old.” She scrunched up her nose at the thought. There was no need to be that polite around her. He should save that sort of language for his elders, at the very least. When he mentioned his age and his search she made an understanding noise.
“Oh of course, of course. Everyone is always so shocked and happy to be Searched, even when they’re as old as you. Not that you’d old, shards no, but you know what I mean. It’s a pity you didn’t get a good look at the dragon though. But you were happy to be Searched, yes? You look happy. Are you happy? You don’t seem like the type to be angry at dragonriders for doing what they do best, right?”
It was very usual for Nandeli to answer her own questions. It was part of how she worked.
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Posted: Wed Apr 08, 2009 9:49 am
It was strange to have someone so involved in knowing all there was to apparently know about him, Kiriwar mused, watching Nandeli with an expression that was just as curious as her mannerisms were. "Two younger brothers, born when I was five turns and seven turns," he explained, smiling crookedly. "We don't get along, unfortunately."
He had to laugh when she brought up his calling her misses, reaching out to gently place a hand on her shoulder in apology. "It's something I learned from my father and it's sort of stuck with my all of my life. I call every lady 'missus', no matter the age or appearance or whatnot. I do apologize for making you feel old, Nandeli," he said, her name rolling off of his tongue with an interesting feel. He quite liked it. When the conversation changed again to dragons, he smiled and nodding, sitting back as he let her speak and continued to eat his meal.
"I am happy, yes. And no, I'm not angry at the dragonriders at all. I'm more disappointed in myself for not recalling the sort of dragon that found me -- I hope to meet the dragon and the rider again someday, perhaps," he said, sipping from his mug of klah, before looking over at Nandeli. "I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that I'm here. I was settling with the idea that I was going to become a Vintner Journeyman soon, and now... I'm here."
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Posted: Wed Apr 08, 2009 5:10 pm
Oooh younger brothers. That made an interesting family dynamic. The eldest brother would go on to be a dragonrider while the youngest ones stayed home. Or, at the very least, the eldest brother got Searched while his brothers had to say home in the Hold. Come to think of it, his brothers would be a good age to be Searched. It must have been difficult to come to the Weyr when the dragons passed over your younger brothers. "That's a shame. You'll make lots of friends here, though, and you'll get along with them." Friends weren't exactly brothers, but they were close in Nan's mind.
She beamed at him when he apologized, liking him more with each passing second. Polite, good looking and he wasn't afraid to say a girl's name! Well, of course he wouldn't be. He was gay, after all. This was so much fun! "That's good! There's a couple who come from the Holds who think that they have to give the riders a stern talking to even though they're here trying to be riders. It's kind of funny. But if you remember what dragon it was or what she looked like I can help you out!" She was dying to know who had Searched him. One never knew when rumours about a rider and a candidate would start circulating.
"Indeed, now you are here. So…" She lifted her head above his as though looking for someone, before she said in a hushed voice, "Seen anybody you like so far? You know…" Nan waggled her eyebrows suggestively.
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Posted: Wed Apr 08, 2009 5:22 pm
Kiriwar nodded at Nandeli's words. He definitely had met a fair few here, and large portion of them, he considered to be friends -- this girl was coming closer and closer to being one of those, he hoped. She was fascinating and rather chipper, and he liked how curious she was as well. "I definitely don't miss my brothers, I can tell you that," he said with a flash of a grin, his dimple appearing on his cheek. "They never got along with me, and I never got along with them, so the separation is probably good for the both of us."
He hummed thoughtfully, then, tilting his head back a little. "I wish I could remember who had Searched me... It was all such a blur, and I want to thank them," he said softly, before looking over at Nandeli. "Do you know if there's any way for me to find out, in particular?" A pause at her next questions, before he laughed sheepishly, lowering his gaze in a somewhat coy manner.
"A few... A few. Davian is a lovely boy, and there's Jiriar, and I met L'mel recently," he said, listing off a few. "But no one official, yet."
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Posted: Wed Apr 08, 2009 6:07 pm
Aaaw he had dimples! How cute! It was really such a shame that so many of the cute boys were gay. Not that she was looking, mind you, but it always helped to know where she stood with them. Still, the fact that he was gay meant that they could be bestest friends and she could totally hook him up with some cute guy and gush about it with Elae later. There were benefits to having cute gay boys as friends. "Shards you are adorable! You'll have no trouble making friends here, that's for sure. One smile and they'll be all over you." She couldn't stop herself from giggling. So far he had taken all of her other harassment well, so she hoped he wouldn't mind this extra bit.
"Find out? Hrm…." Nan tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Weeeell, C'ren or F'sey won't be very much help because they're more stubborn than herdbeasts when it comes to getting information out of them. I guess you could ask bronzerider S'kagi about it, but he might not know. Bronze riders don't do a lot of Searching… oh but bluerider L'mel would be a good choice! I can poke around and ask for you if you'd like. Somebody's bound to know." And knowing things was her specialty. "I doubt anyone would forget bringing in someone as nice and polite as you."
She was all ears the moment the Kiriwar began talking about the boys that he'd met. "Aaaw, no one official? Are they really taking that long to approach you? Probably too shy to do it… I'd be careful with L'mel though, he's got a bit of a reputation." Both of her eyebrows shot up. "But if you're into that then by all means, he's a good choice. Have you ever seen Kaskel?"
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Posted: Wed Apr 08, 2009 6:28 pm
Kiriwar settled more comfortably, having completely forgotten his food and klah at this point, just focused on Nandeli and her inquiries about him. The Vintner was happy to talk to someone who was interested. He laughed at her compliments, waving a hand a little and showing his dimple again. "I guess. I've been trying to make a few friends, but some don't seem to like me at all... Like Erisi," he said, grimacing just a touch out of awkwardness.
"I wouldn't mind having someone else out there, helping me find out who Searched me," he said, flashing a grin at her and leaning against her a bit. "I really would appreciate the help -- I don't feel comfortable enough to walk up to riders and demand questions of them. But you seem to be rather well-settled in this place, so I think you could manage more than me. If you don't mind, of course, dear."
Ah -- he could see the light in her eyes when he started speaking of the boys. "I'm being careful, don't worry. I'm a good boy," he said with a grin, before looking immediately curious, leaning closer. "Kaskel? No."
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Posted: Thu Apr 09, 2009 9:07 am
“Psh! I’ll have to go and give this Erisi a stern talking to.” For more reasons than just making everyone be friends with Kiriwar (which they should be). Studies had shown that someone who went out of their way to dislike a nice person secretly had a crush on said nice person. Nandeli believed very firmly in this theory, and had a sneaking suspicion that this Erisi fellow was hiding some feelings. Perhaps he also suffered from the Hidden-Gay-Older-Brother-Complex. She and Elae would have to investigate this further once they met him.
She grinned when he accepted her proposal, looking thoroughly pleased with herself. “It’ll be no trouble at all!! Don’t worry about it. It’s completely natural to feel a bit strange around the riders for the first little while. Even when one’s your father, they still take some time getting used to.” His comment about her being well-settled earned him a small nudge. “Course I am! Been here my whole life. You were pretty well settled in your Hold, weren’t you?” Of course he was. Good looking, well-behaved Hold boys always fit in well.
The Nose couldn’t help but chuckle at his words. “I’m just making sure you don’t get yourself in too deep, though I’ll come and rescue you any time you need it. Promise!” Nandeli was definitely not above barging into people’s weyrs and invading their personal space. She did it quite frequently. “Aaah, Kaskel. He’s one of those guys that are, you know, so handsome they make girls faint when they walk by. You know the type? Anyways, I had always been sure he was straight ‘cause we grew up together but he has been hanging out with another crèche worker a little longer than usual… What do you think?”
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Posted: Thu Apr 09, 2009 9:30 am
"I don't think that would be best, to be honest. Erisi seems to be rather stubborn and set in his ways, and we've sort of settled on ignoring each other," Kiriwar explained, sighing heavily and leaning forward to rest his elbows on the table. "A shame, since he seemed rather lovely. He just is quite moody, it seems, and I got in his way at the wrong time, and... lost my temper a touch." He flashed a sheepish grin, shrugging his shoulders.
"Ah, you grew up here? I didn't know that. It probably was wonderful," he said, smiling broadly. "It's so pleasant here, if a bit warm, so I can imagine it was wonderful to grow up here. Do you have any siblings at all? I don't recall if I asked you that." Clearly, Kiriwar was getting more comfortable with Nandeli, talking happily and asking her questions in turn -- she had some sort of infectious chipperness to her that he just could not resist.
"Ah, it will be wonderful to have a dashing rescuer," he said, flashing her a dimple-showing grin again. "I tend to get myself in too deep all the time... I don't think very much, when it comes to things like that, and just... tumble into all sorts of situations." A sheepish chuckle, then Kiriwar looked curious again, peering at Nandeli. "Oh, yes, I know the type... He's probably wonderful looking -- oh, really? Oh, that is rather interesting... But, there could be something else. It may be something to be nosy about."
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Posted: Thu Apr 09, 2009 9:48 am
Nandeli simply shrugged in return. “Perhaps it was just a bad day for both of you and you started off on the wrong foot. You never know, he might be worth a second chance, especially if he’s cute. Is he cute?” Maybe Kiriwar had checked out this Erisi fellow who took the attention badly. It wouldn’t be the first time it had happened. Or perhaps Erisi had noticed he was being checked out and had got embarrassed and reacted badly. This definitely needed looking to the next time she and Elae were free from chores. She filed it away in her “potential gay boy drama” mental folder.
“It was nice, definitely. I’ve been down to the Hold – Ista that is – just for a couple of Gathers. My mother lives way out in Red Sands Hold, so I don’t go out to visit there very often. It’s a nice enough Hold though. I like living here though. Much more exciting.” Hold drama just wasn’t the same. The most scandalous thing a girl could do down there was look at a guy the wrong way. Up here, girls (and boys) actually made something out of that look. It was a huge difference. His question surprised her, not used to people asking her about her life, but she took it in stride. “Full siblings? None. I have one half brother here at the Weyr who’s older, and then some younger siblings out with my mother. They were never married, see, my mom and dad, so one night was enough for them.” Judging by her tone she didn’t seem bothered in the slightest.
Her eyes lit up when he said that he got in too deep all the time. What fun! And she had just gotten used to all these candidates who were as boring and unimaginative as La. Things were definitely taking a turn for the better. “Tumbling into situations without thinking? Never fear! All you have to do is call and I’ll come and save you.” She waggled a finger at him, however, when he used the term ‘nosy.’ “Not be nosy about, Kiriwar. Look into. Information collection is an art form, you know. You would be pretty good at it.”
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