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 Posted: Thu Jul 23, 2009 7:02 pm
"Prala, come here."
The little blue firelizard's head emerged from underneath W'ten's cot with what appeared to be one of K'em's socks clutched tightly in his mouth. It appeared that the claims of the Records that dragons had a different perception of smell were correct. There was no way he would have picked up a dirty sock – in his mouth no less – especially when it came out from under his bed. Not to mention it belonged to K'em. The dragonrider couldn't even imagine what it must smell like.
"Give it to me." He held out his hand to the flit who hauled himself obediently up onto the cot beside his. In exchange for the smelly sock he received a small piece of sausage and cheeped happily as he chewed. W'ten held the sock up in front of him and resisted the urge to wrinkle his nose. He didn't want to know why it was under his bed but he decided that he didn't want to know the answer to that. The statistical likelihood that K'em would create a fantastical reason was quite high and he did not desire to be privy to the inner workings of his roommate. He had to deal with him enough as it was.
"K'em, do you have the matching pair to this?"
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Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 5:54 pm
"Where did you find that?"
K'em asked as he stood, hissing softly as the little green lizard perched on his shoulder squawked and dug her claws into his shoulder. He reached over and plucked Orion off, scolding the squalling lizard gently as he placed her on hammock before he walked over to his roommate to retrieve the sock in question. "The other one went missing that time I had- Yeah. That other one went missing a while ago." He wrinkled his nose. "Shards, that's dirty."
The brownrider whipped it over his shoulder into one of the piles of...one of those piles that may or may not be living. "Hey, you aren't that busy, are you? I was just getting ready to head to infirmary. One of the girls came to tell me Cordel won't leave again." He sighed and shook his head. "He can be completely ridiculous sometimes. You want to come along and see if you can't use some reverse psychology on him? My old tactics are starting to fail."
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Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 6:19 pm
"Under my bed. Prala found it." W'ten raised an eyebrow but he did not ask K'em to continue the sentence he broke off. He was quite sure he didn't want to know what his fellow brownrider was doing when he wasn't here. Oh he had his suspicions – who didn't? – but he wasn't ready to formulate proper hypotheses. Even to a scientific mind like his own, there were some things better left undiscovered. It was safer for the Weyr.
He wasn't surprised when the sock joined the numerous piles on K'em's side of the weyr. Despite the state of that sock it probably wouldn't be washed until the whole weyr smelled like dirty socks and W'ten had a mini hissy fit. And by hissy fit we mean a completely controlled routine process in which he stacked all of K'em's clothes on his bed, and if they didn't make it to the wash by evening they were left outside the weyr to enjoy the sun. So far it worked pretty well.
The brownrider was stroking Prala's head when K'em brought up Cordel. He resisted the urge to snort. Cordel was holing himself up in the infirmary. When would the surprises ever end? "I will accompany you, but I cannot promise positive results. If Cordel is in one of his highly emotional moods I am afraid that the likelihood of logic reaching him is quite low. Do we need an excuse to see him or are we attempted a full frontal attack?"
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Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 6:31 pm
"...ew. Prala put that in his mouth?" Even K'em know how completely disgusting that was. He was well aware the strange state of the piles on his floor. Why did W'ten think he refused to take care of them until the brownrider absolutely made him? It wasn't like he like having to jump over things to get to his hammock. (Curse that hammock, he was beginning to hate those fickle things.)
"Yes, well, if he's that bad, you take his ankles, I'll grab his shoulders, and we can drag that stubborn b*****d out," K'em said thoughtfully, shifting his gaze as Orion began to kreel pitifully. Stupid firelizard. He was beginning to suspect he was actually just conned into 'winning' the damn egg. Why had he wanted one, anyways? Of course, W'ten's firelizard was well behaved. It was only natural.
"So that would make this a no-holds-barred attack, W'ten. Whatever tactic you can think of, it's fair game. He's trying to pull a third shift." The brownrider rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Maybe he's got a new girlfriend he's trying to impress, or something."
Now wouldn't THAT be interesting.
"C'mon." He nodded towards the door. "Let's get going, before he kills someone because the tired b*****d can't see straight."
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Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 7:12 pm
He nearly said that he felt more sorry for himself for having to touch it but he decided that there were more pressing matters than his personal hygiene. Besides, the sock was no longer on his side of the weyr, which meant it was out of his hands (thankfully).
W'ten raised both eyebrows at K'em's plan. "I do not think that would be the most ideal plan. Surely at least administering a mild sedative before we carried him out would be more efficient? The moment he feels threatened he will, no doubt, explode into a flurry of limbs and I do not need to spend any more time under his care than necessary." Not to mention he didn't want to break his nose trying to carry a flailing Cordel out of the infirmary. Perhaps they should just leave the Healer there if he was so insistent.
Unfortunately, K'em seemed incredibly determined to get the Healer out and about. The brownrider kept his opinion of Cordel impressing a girlfriend to himself, but the subtle expression on his face was enough. Clearly he did not think that Cordel was capable of having a girlfriend, much less impressing her by working overtime. "Indeed. I would hate to see him cause accidental harm." Setting Prala neatly on his shoulders, W'ten followed K'em out the door, going over his plan of attack as they moved. If it really was no-holds-barred as his friend had said, he had a feeling that this was going to get messy quickly. He had better prepare a plan of retreat should Cordel start threatening them.
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Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 7:57 pm
Well, Cordel would give the kitchens their due: they could at least manage a cup of klah without screwing it up too badly. Although, how one could mess up what was essentially boiled bark was beyond Cordel… the Healer glared at the cup that had long ago gone cold and sipped at it anyway before setting it aside. Apparently, today was, ‘Hey, Let’s Go Get Ourselves Hurt in New and Inventive Ways’ Day. And no one had thought to warn the Healer ahead of time. That was just downright inconsiderate of them, since he could have practiced some really scathing speeches.
Somehow, he’d managed anyway. There was at least one kid out there who would never even consider trying to impress his friends by catching tunnelsnakes barehanded, and not just because of the injuries he had incurred. Tribble chirruped curiously from her bed-basket and poked her nose out from under the various scraps of fabric piled into it. When Cordel got the thing for her, he had assumed she would sleep on top of the fabric scraps. The firelizard had different plans and amused herself by burrowing under all of it. It was a nice touch to the otherwise sterile ‘office’ than Cordel had adopted as his own.
The Healer glanced down the list of latest injuries and, for once, wondered if K’em might be getting a run for his money in the Idiot of the Turn award. Again, he stifled a yawn and started to prepare for his rounds, which meant he had to look at least awake.
“Trib, come here…” he said, very carefully coaxing the little Green out of her hiding place. “There’s a good girl… now, let’s go see who’s managed to hurt themselves now, hm?”
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Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 8:07 pm
"If you're going to be a girl about it, W'ten, I'll take him by the ankles. Besides, I can't imagine they'd let us near sedatives." To be more precise, he doubted they'd let him anywhere near anything remotely sharp. Despite the fact he was on relatively friendly terms with most of the female staff down at the infirmary, he was still a frequent visitor, and it usually wasn't on his terms. It would be on their heads if he got himself into something he shouldn't (and he would, inevitably), so despite his charming good looks- K'em paused. Well. Maybe they could use his charming good looks. (After all, it wasn't like W'ten's...decent looks could charm even the simplest of girls. No, they'd need an expert. And yes, that would be him.)
He walked with his friend to the infirmary in a comfortable silence, contemplating the idea of Cordel planting a well-aimed boot in W'ten's face. The imagery was absolutely hilarious, though he was fairly certain his imaginary W'ten was much more vulgar (and much less intelligent) than the brownrider standing next to him.
K'em waltzed into the infirmary, nodding and grinning to the brunette waving at him before fixing his charming smile on the black-haired woman who'd asked him to fetch Cordel in the first place. He kept walking though (W'ten should be proud) and didn't stop until he reached Cordel's office (also known as the Herb Storage Room Confiscated by that Grumpy b*****d). About to knock, the wingsecond paused and turned to W'ten, the grin splitting his face positively alarming.
"Can I kick the door in?"
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Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 8:57 pm
"Your insult was illogical, not to mention it barely passes the minimum criteria to be an insult. However, if you wish to carry him by his feet and injure yourself, you are free to do so. I would imagine he will make your life quite miserable when he is caring for you." W'ten totally had logical reasons for avoiding injury, especially at Cordel's hands. He was sure the Healer had had enough of him – and he had certainly had enough of Cordel – and the last thing he needed was to subject himself to more of Cordel's "tender love and care." If you could even call it that.
He was completely unaware of K'em's thoughts as they made their way to the infirmary, and that was probably for the better. The brownrider was too busy working out the probabilities of Cordel's responses to their approach. Until he could judge the Healer's emotional distress it was hard to tell how he would respond. It would have been much easier if he had come here alone, but at the same time, having K'em with him might be the key to their success. Cordel could only take so much flak from W'ten before he needed K'em to soften the blows.
At K'em's question he shook his head. "No. Open it like a normal person. We're trying to get him out of here, not convince him he needs to stay here long with you nursing an injured foot." Prala cheeped reprovingly from W'ten's shoulder.
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Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 9:31 pm
"Normal person?"
Honestly, W'ten should know him better than that.
K'em took a step back, and without much further ado, kicked the door as hard as he could. It was only as the door was parting with its hinges did the brownrider think to hope his friend wasn't directly behind it. That would considerably lessen their chances of getting Cordel out in a civilized manner, but, quite frankly, the wingsecond was fairly positive the chances of that were less than zero, anyways.
"Cordel! Come out, come out, wherever you are~?"
K'em glanced around, forcing himself not to favor the foot he just kicked the door in with. Can't prove W'ten right can't prove W'ten right can't prove W'ten right.
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Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 9:41 pm
By sheer luck, Cordel had not been around the door. All of the voices on the other side of it startled Tribble, making the firelizard flutter in alarm and hide under the desk. Cordel sighed and got on his knees to try and coax the little firelizard back out. She was at a very important stage of training, after all; he could hardly let her go unsocialized. Holding out a bit of food in one hand, he very carefully tried to lure Tribble into the open once more.
Hopping awkwardly, the firelizard approached. “Chirrup? Chiiiirrrup?” she nosed the food curiously before nibbling at it. But then the door seemingly exploded inward. “Skeeee!” Tribble vanished under the desk once more, shivering miserably at the huge bad sound.
Cordel merely blinked at the two men who were suddenly blocking his doorway. A doorway, he noted, which was now devoid of doors. “Sorry, K’em. You shouldn’t have rushed down here. I still haven’t come up with that cure for stupid yet but, rest assured, when I do invent it, you’ll be the first to be cured. W’ten, what’s all this about?” he glared at the other Brownrider, deciding that he was more likely to give a complete answer than K’em.
…Oh, right. He got up slowly and brushed himself off, but kept up the glare. “Sit down, K’em. I’ll see to your foot in a moment.”
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Posted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 9:53 pm
…
W'ten had to try very, very hard to keep his face straight. He should have just opened the door for K'em and avoided this problem all together. The brownrider had not thought his roommate would take that statement as a challenge to kick down the door. He was lucky he hadn't broken his foot or something equally as stupid. Honestly, did K'em never learn that he was responsible for the majority of his injuries? If he just stayed in his weyr or went out and did normal things he wouldn't end up in the infirmary so often. Or maybe he just liked putting himself as Cordel's mercy. W'ten could not imagine why.
Cordel took the breaking and entering better than he expected. As the Healer talked he allowed himself to survey their target, assessing both physical condition and his mood in the time that the Healer spoke to K'em. His wits were still sharp, which meant he hadn't been drinking too much, but he could have been drinking several mugs of klah to stay awake. He did look tired though – or at least more ragged than usual – and the fact that he didn't respond with an emotional outburst convinced W'ten that he was more tired than he let on. The Healer hadn't even said anything about the loss of his door. He definitely needed a nap.
"K'em is under the impression that you are overworking yourself and that your clinical skills have thusly decreased by at least 66.4 percent, if not more. As you can well imagine, this is not only detrimental to your own health but to the health of your patients. He also believes you are attempting to work yourself to death to gain the interest of a women, though he has yet to convince me of the validity of that argument." Prala made a disapproving sound. "I am merely here to provide 'back up', as you say, and to aid K'em should he decide that you need to be physically removed from the premises."
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Posted: Sat Jul 25, 2009 12:54 pm
"I was joking about the girl, W'ten," K'em felt the need to point out, waggling his finger at his roommate. "You know, jokes? It's a tough concept, I know." But it wouldn't do to antagonize the other brownrider right now, not when there was a very high probability he was going to require him to evict Cordel from his makeshift office. Office? Shards, this thing was more like a closet, K'em decided, peering around the room as Cordel made meaningless words at him.
Hurr.
They were dragging Cordel out of the closet.
Tickled pink by the very notion, he completely ignored the healers order and folded his arms over his chest. The attempt to look solemn was completely ruined by the wide smile and dancing eyes; K'em was having a wonderful time. He really didn't see Cordel enough anymore. Now he got to scheme with W'ten (because W'ten was good fun too, once you figured out how he worked) AND he got to kidnap Cordel. And he got to kick a door in. That was fantastic. Even if it hurt a little (which it didn't).
"Well, you heard the man, Cordel. You're tired and now you suck and your job and you should just coming willingly or there will be consequences." K'em grinned that Cheshire grin. "Of course, we all know I'm an expert at consequences."
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Posted: Sat Jul 25, 2009 12:59 pm
A great deal of W’ten’s words went right over Cordel’s sleep-deprived mind, but he took care not to show it. It didn’t really matter what the Brownrider was saying anyway; he was probably just insulting the Healer, just as he usually did. Most of his attention was fixed on the firelizard neatly perched on W’ten’s shoulder during the Brownrider’s little speech and there was only room in his mind for, ‘Oh Faranth… there’s a firelizard-version of him now?!’ And was it just his imagination, or did the little Blue’s paw actually shake reprovingly at him…?
“Let me say this very slowly so there’s no chance that either of you will misunderstand… there’s also no cure for crazy. Believe me, I’ve tried, for everyone’s sake.” As for the idea that W’ten had actually come down here at K’em’s behest, well that was just impossible. Cordel couldn’t actually remember a time when W’ten had done the Wingsecond’s bidding. “Whatever the real reason for you two coming down here and ruining my door in the process, it’ll have to wait until I’m done with my rounds. Now move or else I’ll make you move.”
As a threat, it was rather lacking something… but, shards, he’d come up with a decent threat later for laterer use.
… Laterer?
Well, whatever. Somehow, K’em’s threat failed to move him to do anything other than glare at the man. “The number one consequence would be just dealing with you and your bloated ego. Are you going to stay in my way, or do I have to remove you both?”
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Posted: Sat Jul 25, 2009 6:36 pm
W'ten fixed K'em with a look that clearly said "if you want my help you had better shut your mouth." He wasn't about to back someone up who wasn't taking his side in this argument, and his friend could forget getting his help if Cordel needed to be carried out. It wasn't worth a kick in the nose (or worse) if K'em was going to be a little smart mouth. There were always better things to do.
Noticing where Cordel's attention seemed to be lingering, the brownrider reached up to stroke the firelizard. What exactly was the Healer looking at? Prala was a perfectly well behaved flit who was both obedient and had manners. The same couldn't be said about K'em's Orion, something he was extremely pleased about. Not that he would ever tell K'em that, but he let little things slip every now and then, little subtle cues that W'ten was clearly feeling superior. And since Cordel had noticed his little pet, the brownrider decided that he might as well bring Prala up again. But he wasn't bragging. W'ten didn't brag. "Is there something wrong with Prala?" Sensing he was being talked about, the blue cheeped curiously.
The fact that Cordel was actually speaking calmly and rationally was highly disturbing to the brownrider. He clearly didn't have enough energy for his usual emotional response, which meant that he was more tired that W'ten had initially thought he was. What interested him most was the fact that the Healer became, if possible, slightly more logical when he ran out of energy. Fascinating. "It would be unwise and illogical to resist, Healer Cordel. Not only are you unfit for duty, you are also outnumbered. It would be more prudent to allow K'em to escort you to your quarters and put you to bed." The expression on his face dared anyone to make any sexual jokes about that.
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Posted: Sat Jul 25, 2009 6:57 pm
K'em read the look and took note. He really did want W'ten's help, even if he couldn't resist poking just a little fun at him. Ah, well. He could always do that later when W'ten was beating him at cards. At least he'd be in a better mood then. "W'ten's right, Cordel." As per usual, but the wingsecond wasn't about to admit that, not in a million years. "Resistance is futile."
He took a step closer, not the least bit troubled by Cordel's grumpy attitude. He was sort of like an old man, really. All bark and absolutely no bite, especially when you knew how to handle him. Not to mention the healer was about as sleepy as K'em was having fun, so the thought he might actually hurt him was absolutely comical. He took another step and motioned for Cordel to come along like a good little healer.
"C'mon kitten," he purred, "I know you don't want anyone to know 'bout us, but now you're just making an idiot out of yourself. I promise I can have you to sleep in five minutes."
What? W'ten dared him. Besides, all the stupid banter just allowed him to slowly inch closer and, if the other brownrider had half a brain, he might do the same so they could grab the renegade healer should he try to make a break for it.
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