Baby Bath

Characters Alexa, Kate
Synopsis Kate and little Xinieth come down to the lake for a bath; Alexa and Raaneth offer some companionship.
Out-of-Character Date March 2, 2020

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.


The weyrling dragons are still small, though far larger than they not so terribly long ago at their hatching. Venturing a little further from the barracks as the days pass they've all been at least as far as the lake given the necessity of baths. « Come on! » excitement bubbles in the mists that flow around Xinieth's arrival bounds around Kate who is far too slow if you ask the young green, but then she's not rushing ahead either.

They grow so fast!! Even if Alexa would be hard pressed to believe that Raaneth was ever that small to begin with (and, well. Maybe she wasn't. But she was definitely a helluva lot smaller than she is now!) particularly when she has to bathe her. But thankfully, in the case of the grown gold, a full bath is not necessary. Just a little spot-washing and oiling needed, a task that still takes a considerably amount of time if one were to ask Alexa. But the arrival of baby greens and their weyrlings is definitely a worthy distraction, and both queen and rider turn to watch the approach. A grin tugs at Alexa's lips, and while Raaneth might not be able to smile on the outside, there's warmth and amusement enough in the gentle brush of her mind to Xinieth's own. « Hello, little one, » comes from the dragon, while the human half offers a cheerful, "Hey!" instead.

And SPLASH! Once they're close enough that last hop from Xinieth lands her in the water sending a spray in every direction. « Its WATER, Raanath! » Never mind that its not the first time she's seen the lake, one might think it were. The blonde flinches at the water in her face brushing some from her face before the realization hits that she's being spoken to. "Hey," Kate's return greeting to Alexa is far more weary though there is a smile to go with it all the same even if there's is an apology written in it as well. "

« It is, indeed, » agrees Raaneth, head dropped so that she can snuffle at the water herself. She's definitely seen it before, and while her own fascination for the lake has long-ago faded, she'll happily play in the water at least a little bit. Alexa, who is happy to welcome an excuse to give her tired arms a break, rinses her hands and steps a bit closer to shore. She's already soaked, so a little bit of splashing doesn't bother her much, though there's a wry look cast the way of the weyrling. "You look… tired," she decides, somehow both amused and sympathetic in the same moment. "How are you settling in?"

Xinieth remains just at the shore line while sinking into the water as much as she can, tail swishing back and forth through the wonderful wetness while Kate bends down to strip boots from feet. Tossing them up a few feet back to dry, and keep dry, before she steps into the water herself. "I am," the simple response serves to both confirm her tiredness and answer the question if only vaguely. "Alright I think," she adds, "Don't know that I'll ever be used to her being in my head all the time," reaching a hand to rest against the green's muzzle with a fond smile towards her.

"You will." The words are at least kindly spoken, empathetic to the weyrling's situation, as Alexa was definitely there herself. "And then you will wonder how you ever got by without it." A private smile comes for Raaneth, soft and sweet and far more tender than anything which usually graces Alexa's face. But it's gone a moment later, bright eyes and amused-yet-sympathetic smile offered to Kate. "And yeah. I remember being exhausted all the time in the beginning. That passes, too," she promises. "You get stronger. They get more… steady. Life sort of settles."

Kate nods, "Yeah," she replies slowly. "That's what they say," to all of those comments Alexa has made. That is what she keeps hearing and it must be true, if not always easy to believe when going through it. "Sure you're right," she comments in return, resigned to the fact that it will just take time to get to that point. SPLASH! All that tail twitching could only ever end in such a way after all Xinieth bubbling her amusement with current surroundings.

Raaneth tosses her head, nose in the water, happily splashing along a little bit. Alexa won't try to convince her, though there might be one of those infuriating 'you'll see when you're older' expressions that often make the recipient roll their eyes (and honestly, if Alexa could see herself, she'd definitely be rolling her eyes). Instead, she'll offer a pleasant, "Try to enjoy it if you can. They're only babies once," in gentle farewell. A little snort, and the gold lifts her head, gingerly stepping out of the water and back onto the beach. « Be well, little one, » she offers, before following Alexa back toward the bowl.

Please use the site manager to activate the Forum, or ask your admin to help
Unless otherwise stated, the content of this page is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License