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 Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 8:21 pm
It occurred to him, far too late, that staying up all night hadn't been Okassis`s best decision. But he'd practically had to. He was a man that answered stress with work. He had to keep his hands busy, or his thoughts would overwhelm him. He usually made a point of getting at least a little sleep, though. But he doubted that he was the only Candidate that hadn't gotten much rest the night after Hatching. The fact that Sovann - S'van - hadn't been there for him to allay his thoughts to, hadn't been much of a help. He hadn't realized how much having the seaholder for his bunkmate had helped him relax.... Ah, shells. Well, at least he'd gotten through the night okay. Better than some folk might be able to claim. Bleary-eyed, Okassis joined the rest of the sleepy-eyed crowd at the Kitchen Cavern, dressed up in full gear and with a satchel over his shoulder. Couldn't hurt him to get something to eat, while he had the chance....
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 8:28 pm
"... Okassis?" S'van said uncertainly, his hand freezing on the handle of a pot of klah. The trader-candidate was fully dressed, a pack over his shoulder. S'van paled beneath his tan until he neared the white that some of the holders seemed to sport. He knew that look, he knew that pose. Okassis was leaving once again. Finally, finally when he thought that they would have a chance to be together, to spend some time together... this! He seemed to shake himself, and he stopped pouring the klah before the mug spilled over. His hand trembling slightly, he offered the mug to his friend. ... Wait. Kas didn't drink klah. Shards. From the weyrling barracks, Galliath stirred, but did not quite awaken.
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 8:32 pm
"Oh - hey. Just who I wanted to see!" Okassis turned to meet his friend, falsely cheerful. There was no mistaking the trader's weariness. Depression, or just plain tired? The two were indistinguishable, but very telling on Okassis's normally energetic face.
His eyes went down to the mug. "... Sovann, y'know I don't drink that stuff," he mentioned with a quirk of one brow, forgetting to conjugate his friend's name.
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 8:35 pm
"Yeah. I know." Oh Shards and Shells, he wasn't going to cry. S'van did not cry, scorch it! He was seventeen turns old, and men didn't cry. Still, his voice was rather tight when he spoke. Withdrawing the hand and the offering of klah, he set the mug down. He was such a fardling idiot-- he had been a deadglow to think that Okassis would stay. Shells, he had already stayed longer than he ever did in any one place these days. "So, you're leaving." It was not a question. He knew his friend far too well for it to be a question.
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 8:42 pm
Okassis's eyes widened more than a touch at his friend's astute observation. For a moment the Trader was frozen, perhaps having expected that S'van wouldn't have caught on - maybe he'd planned to break the news to him gently. That would explain the lack of sleep - he might've spent the whole night planning just how he was going to make his excuses, put on that sad little smile he'd always worn when the caravan had moved out. Looks like time again, was how Okassis had gently let the news slip, mimicking the sound of his father. A bit of a smile trickled onto Okassis's face. "Hmp," he let his gaze drift down, and unslung the pack from his shoulders. "Guess this bag makes it look pretty obvious, doesn't it?" he said, trying to keep the mood light while he pulled it open, showed it up to his friend, revealing... Wait, people usually carried around more than just one thing in their bags when they were leaving, right? "Whaddaya think?"
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 8:48 pm
Men don't cry, S'van reminded himself. Men don't cry! Watching Okassis' eyes widen, that little smile on his lips, it was terribly hard to keep his father's words in mind. "So... time for you to move on?" he said, his voice a croak as he swallowed around the dragonet sized lump in his throat. "..." Staring at the box it was all he could do to keep the fardling tears in. No. No, he was not going to cry. He was a man grown now, and ... he was a brown rider! He was not weak, he did not need to resort to such childish behavior. "It's... it's v-very nice, Kas." Arrgh, was his lip trembling? Scorch it! S'van tore his eyes off of his best friend to read the writing on the box, and then it truly became an internal battle. Oh Faranth, why had Okassis had to make a gift of his departure?
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 8:53 pm
Okassis's face split into a tired grin for a moment - then, catching a look at S'van, a shocked frown. "Hey. Heeeey!" he squawked, suddenly outraged. "Cut that out, will you? You want Nan to see?" There was no doubt in the youth's mind, the threat of the Nose would bring his friend in line. "You dimglow! You think I'd be up all night making you a goodbye gift? Fardles, if I was leaving, I'd be gone and that's that!" He gave S'van an exasperated look. In all these years, he'd have thought that the seaholder would have learned something about traders!
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 8:58 pm
"..." S'van stared at Okassis for a long moment, disbelief written in his expression. Then, realizing how very thoroughly he had been fooled, the new weyrling flushed from the roots of his hair down past his collar. Glancing away, looking utterly ashamed of his foolish behavior, S'van muttered a rather colorful curse under his breath, and punched Okassis in the shoulder. "You shouldn't have scared me like that, Kas! You might've been hiding your fardling luggage, okay?" Shards but Okassis could be so mean. "I didn't really think you were leaving anyway," he said sulkily, having been very thoroughly had.
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 9:08 pm
Chucking, the shave-headed boy accepted the due abuse with relative dignity. "Well shards, Sovann, I didn't know you were going to get all dramatic over it!" Okassis teased, as should only be expected. Muting himself a touch, he leaned an elbow on the table and motioned that his friend should sit with him. "I suppose it's S'van now, isn't it? Where's the lug of yours at?"
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 9:14 pm
S'van growled a little, and picked up the mug again, settling down next to Okassis. "You are so mean sometimes, you know that?" If Kas didn't want the klah, he was certainly going to have it. He knew for a fact that this particular brew was a good one. Taking a careful sip, he raised an eyebrow. He was used to Okassis teasing him, really he was. He had just been so wound up after the Hatching that it had caught him somewhat by surprise. "Yeah, it's S'van, and Galliath is currently sleeping. He does a lot of that." New dragonets did, he was told.
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 9:28 pm
"Not so surprising. Probably fardling tired, after his grand debut, huh?" Okassis answered, chuckling. It wasn't quite as rich as he normally had, though, and the mirth faded quickly from him.
His fingers played on the corner of the table, detecting some small imperfection to obsess over, and his eyes went to his feet. Exercising some nominal effort, he forced his gaze up, grinning, and focused on his friend.
"So. What's it like?"
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 9:32 pm
"... Like having you in my head all the time." S'van wasn't even remotely joking, either. The similarities between Okassis and Galliath were extremely striking, and hard to ignore. "Only if you were a baby. Sort of." If they were similar now, what would it be like when Galliath grew up? S'van's expression transitioned from amused to slightly alarmed as he digested that thought in his mind. Oh Shards he was fardling stuck, wasn't he? Surrounded by Okassis types from all sides! "He is pretty tired, yes. He pretty much gave me a speech when he arrived, too."
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 10:44 pm
"Did he, now?" Okassis replied conversationally. His mind was clearly drifting - it was easy to tell with him, just because he was normally so engaged in conversation. Battling to keep his focus, he folded both arms on the table in front of him. "I'm surprised you're here at all. I would've laid marks you'd be by Galliath. Suppose dragonriders gotta eat too, though, eh?"
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Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 10:56 pm
"You also would've laid marks that I'd Impress a green, remember?" The gentle reminder was intended to be shared as a joke between them, but as soon as the words were out of his mouth, S'van wondered if Okassis would take them for the joke that they were meant to be. "I'm not going to stop being hungry just because I Impressed, Kas." Now Okassis was just being silly. ... Wasn't he? "Are you tired or something?" His way of offering Okassis a chance to open up if there was something bother him. His way of trying to bridge the gap that had suddenly sprung up between them.
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Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 12:40 pm
"Sharding tired," Okassis agreed, rubbing sleepily at his eyes. "You know, they're already trying to shove some poor schmoe into your place in the barracks? Guess they've got an overpopulation issue." A too-close elbow jostled him, punctuating the point, and Okassis innocently jabbed his elbow back to warn off the intruder. "Probably oughta stop bringing more Candidates in - the Holds'll turn into crazed wherries if they have to pay for all these folk." As usual, he was being evasive, bypassing the real issue on his mind. Of course, with all these people around, he probably wasn't so likely to open up, anyway.
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