| Characters | E'sai, Neyuni |
| Synopsis | Weyrling E'sai briefly talks with Weyrwoman Neyuni of visitors from home while Khuth and Zuhth discuss the decorum of bathing and her role as his mother. |
| Out-of-Character Date | January 23, 2015 |
Igen Weyr - Lake Shore
It is sometimes hard to tell where the bowl ends and the lake shore begins. Fine grains of gold, tan and orange hued sand layer much as the bowl walls in the distance beyond. The sand only gives way to thin patches of grass where the tall fence of the feeding grounds intersects the lake to the south and the smooth curve of the bowl wall rises on the opposite shore. At that intersection one can make out a small building and colorful fabrics where the Weyr's residents go to relax. The shallow lake waters shimmer invitingly, day and night, lapping at the fine grain sands. Engineered pipes are hidden beneath the bowl landscape and feed the lake as well as the grasses of the feeding grounds to keep the water levels from dropping past a certain point which is marked by a waist high obelisk.
It's past the heat of the day, that time of the day when weyrlings are released from the rigors of their daily physical and mental training. The heat, as ever, is still intense but the relatively cooler waters of the shallow lake help take the edge off, especially when one is submerged to all but eyes to headknobs as Khuth proves to be his lapis a deeper blue than the waters that surround him as not-quite-camouflage. E'sai is only in up to his knees, wearing holderly appropriate swim trunks, shirt and floppy hat as well as the telltale streak of sunscreen on his nose that says he's taking care with his fair skin. In one hand is held a bucket that holds all the necessities for dragon washing. "You know it will be easier to clean you if you sit up and come a little shallower," he addresses the blue in what is a very reasonable tone. The head must tilt because there's a slight ripple in the water and a little more lapis shows on one side while the opposite eye closes one of its protective lids lest it get water in it. Evidently, reasonable as E'sai seems to be being, Khuth is unconvinced, for the moment.
Neyuni strolls down to the lake shore, the passing edge of the days heat enticing her or else its the lumbering demands of the larger gold who leads the way. Zuhth keeps going, right into the warmed shallows and then out for a dip intothe cooler deeps. As the dragon rinses it gives her rider a chance to drop a towel or two onto the beach. "No sense in these getting wet…" and to strip off an extra layer that also is apparently unneded for bathing things. Unlike most others on such errand she isn't lugging buckets of brushes and tools and other odd assortments, it's only a simple cloth which dangles from a loop on her belt and a whistle which brings a blue and brown firelizard from palces distant. A grumpy hiss denotes the larger tiny queen on the shore wrapped abotu a few of her own eggs, which Neyuni ignores as she enlists the help of the others as Zuhth swims back towards the shore, dissapearing beneath the waters somewhat behind Khuth, the darker shadow of the submerged dragon drawing closer to his submerged tail in the event he might or might not be paying attention.
Khuth pays attention. It's one of the things that makes Khuth Khuth. But his is a quiet attention, lacking in the overt energeticness that is a common trait among the young. His head swivels to observe the entry of his dam into the water, tilts quite slowly as she submerges. « I'm given to understand it is the habit of mothers to ensure the hygiene of their young, » he observes casually as she makes her approach, though he doesn't shift his tail in the least, « Have you come to bathe me, mother? » That relationship, mother. That strikes an odd, disharmonious note in Khuth's understanding of the world as it is. It is not the same for he and Zuhth who clutched him as it is for E'sai and the woman he calls mother. The woman who visited only days ago, Khuth still remembers. The blue's distraction with the gold prompts E'sai's own head to turn so he can catch sight of Neyuni and snap off a salute that's as crisp as he can manage while holding the bucket. "Afternoon, Weyrwoman Neyuni," he calls, not unlike other casual greetings she must garner when she comes to the populated lake.
Zuhth let's loose a few bubbles from under the water as her jaws snap in light warnign near the youngsters hindquarters before her head rises and breaks the surface. «I am responsible for all here.» a deeper sense of duty than her rider has typically felt emenates from her strong mind. Of care as to which are hers biologically that doesn't seem to carry much in her thoughts, she'll see that all are tended. «You are hardly a tiny thing anymore. Surely you ar ebig enough to get your rider to bathe you, I have mine.» there are undertones of question, has he not learned to /handle/ his rider yet? Neyuni is entering the shallows and gives a wave in reply. Seems she's a bit more ifnormal "Hey E'sai. How's Khuth today? I can hardly see any of him," though from the bluer waters around the bits of head peeking out she can tell he's there, surely. Fingers work to unknot the cloth from the ring on her waist as she draws closer.
« He will, » Khuth readily agrees and without any sign of ruffled feath—er, hide? « You just seemed to be approaching me and I wondered at your purpose. » He thinks now, it's a slippery but not unpleasant feeling should she care to sample it, like water trickling down over rocks and stone to dribble down into some serenely stagnant pool. « What is your interest? » He decides to ask after coming up with nothing worth speaking. "Good, being a bit stubborn about where I bathe him," but there's a good natured smile for the disagreement between partners. "And you and Zuhth?" The inquiry is polite but not lacking in genuine curiosity; isn't E'sai always curious?
Neyuni ahhhhs in a way of long understanding. "Zuhth was particularly.. stubborn when she was younger." there's a snort as the gold heaves away frot eh younger blue and into the shallower water where her rider and others can scrub at her without much difficulty. The two firelizards give happy cries, diving intothe water and then launching themselves at different parts of the queen where she clearly favors a harder scritching their tiny talons apply just right with many turns of clear practice. «My motives are my own.» she doesn't seem inclined to let loose all her secrets, the dry heat of her own mind mingling with Khuth's slippery thoughts a short bit, tasting, testing perhaps. It's hard to say what strange things dragons get up to. "Was that your family the other sevenday? I thought I'd seen some new faces about but didn't get a chance to say hello. Al'dru's mumbled something but he was so tired the other night. You all really do push him as hard as he's supposed to be pushing you, y'know." A golden tail flicks out of the water and sends a splash towards the younger blue «Do come forward. If you're going to keep your rider waiting you can always come help bathe me.»
"He must get that from her, if it happens the way it happens for dragons as it does for us." If that makes any sense at all. E'sai seems suddenly a little awkward, but maybe that's because he's dipping his head to half-hide his blush. "Yes, ma'am. My mother and one of my sisters and one of my brothers and ah— a friend? I guess you could call her that." He reaches up a hand to rub at the back of his head even as Khuth obliges the gold by sinuously slipping through the waters to come to where it usually suits his rider to bathe him. "I don't know that we mean to push him, ma'am. It's a lot of us to handle, I guess." So many baby dragons, so little time. « I'm not certain I should, » perhaps Khuth means keeping his rider waiting, or maybe that he should or shouldn't help bathe his dam. « It seems the sort of thing one oughtn't make a habit of in any case. I'm no bronze. » Which hints at the latter, but could still be the former and with Khuth is likely both at once.
Neyuni takes her cloth and starts rubbing it along Zuhth's next staying on the side where she can still converse a bit with the weyrling. The queen settles somewhat, letting others bathe her as they please which seems to suit her just fine for the moment. «Bronze.» there's a derisive mental snort at that «Be glad you are not. They seem to all be so… so….» there's isn't a word so much as a hot wind of irritation as if they are to much for her to have to deal with and physically she blows a round of bubbles in the surface waters. Neyuni chuckles "Oh my. That sounds… overwhelming. Now no 'friends' until Khuth's a bit older y'know and don't worry. I help Al'dru 'relax' plenty too." she winks and then dunks the cloth into the water and switching hands continue along the dampened hide "How did they all react to Khuth? Looks liek he's ready for a bath afterall."
« They cannot help but be as their nature dictates, » Khuth offers pragmatically, rather dismissive of any ill-feeling toward bronzes for all that he and Lolath are known to have their more than tense moments. Grudges are not the kinds of things he keeps. « I'm not sure I should wish to get in the habit of bathing greens, either. » For whatever that thoughtful sentiment is worth. He's distracted from this thinking because he has to crane his head to observe E'sai's deeper blush and flustered state as he tries to correct, "Oh, no. No, no, nonono." He looks up at Neyuni with rather wide and innocent eyes, "It's not like that. It's just that, I'm—" The explanation suddenly comes in a rush of words with barely a breath taken, "My parents are minor holders down south and they thought I might one day take the neighbor's daughter as a wife once I was a journeyman and able to as it would help with relations with the neighboring citrus holding, even though I'm only the fourth son," and therefore not as desirable as the older three. "Anyway," he steps to start employing the brush from his bucket on his dragon's hide because that's somewhere safe to focus, "I guess she couldn't believe that I'd really stood and impressed instead of.. well, whatever else I might've done." He swallows, "I'm glad that.. Al'dru gets.. uhm." His cheeks are crimson as he trails off, a sharp contrast to the blue hide so close to it. It's possible that he presses his forehead to Khuth's side a couple times when he thinks Neyuni isn't looking.
Neyuni has had many turns to acclimate to the joys nad sorrows faced when one's life takes that different direction. It doesn't make it easy yet, but she's better at understanding. "I see. Well, there are always still opportunities depending on what you decide when you graduate. The Weyr's pretty…. open." and holders less often so even in these times. Apparently Zuhth takes that moment to stretch her wings and nose her rider towards a particularly dusty spot "Why there's barely two specks here dear" rider complains while dutifully rubbing the indicated spot voice drifting out of reach as she gets to it on the far side of the queen. Zuhth's head tilts back towards Khuth, the weyrlings rider given a break from further inquiry by chance, or not, at her whim.
