Xanadu Weyr - Steward's Office
The office of the Steward is a place for things to pass through. On the side of the wooden desk nearest the door are a pair of boxes labeled In and Out. The center of the desk provides a place to process those papers, with a set of draftsman's tools - pens, pencils, rulers and compasses - tucked in a small wooden box. The computer, as it receives fewer messages, is set off to the side of the desk.
One thing that stays in the office is the Steward himself - at least, so long as he holds that office - and so there's a comfortable chair behind that desk, as well as a pair of plain wooden ones in front of it for those passing through.
Bookshelves line the walls, crammed with tomes ranging in topic from weather patterns of the southern continent to crop output for the last one hundred turns. They are some the many things of which a Steward must have a passing knowledge - one sufficient to let him delegate the rest. To record the events so delegated, there are a pair of file cabinets full of paperwork not yet so historical as to merit relocation to the archives.
Spring weather is perhaps not generally considered the most optimal from the perspective of those spending time outdoors. It is conducive to the growth of plants. It is, if not entirely conducive to construction projects, at least more suitable than winter. It is also raining, a steady drizzle that's been going on for several hours and seems inclined to continue for several more. This is perhaps not immediately Jethaniel's concern, given that the office of the steward is located indoors, and he is, on this particular afternoon, located in that office instead of conducting any direct inspections of the exterior sites whose assessment has several papers spread across his desk and being duly considered.
On the other hand, the quite steady drizzle is most definitely Daoi's concern, and that may quickly spread to the steward's sphere of concern as well. Why? Well, his door swings open moments after a knock and a rather drenched woman steps inside. The fact that she is wet is rather key, as now she's steadily dripping on his office floor. There's a clearing of her throat, or perhaps it was a cough, into her fist.
Jethaniel looks up to his door at the sound of the knock. This means he is observing it when it opens - a not all that unexpected occurence; in theory, the purpose of a knock is to permit him to assess whether he wishes to have an exterior person enter. In practice, it often serves merely as warning. In this particular case… "Ah." Not only does he have a visitor, she is somewhat excessively moisturized. Jethaniel observes this fact through visual and auditory means as she drips. "Have the hot springs undergone a further… incident?"
Daoi hadn't exactly been looking to see if he had been paying attention, she was just assuming he'd be as buried in his work and undistractable as he'd been in the past. Rubbing the excessive moisture dripping on her face so she can perhaps see him a little less blurrily she then blinks. "Incident?" There's a mix of amusement and concern warring in her inflection due to the implications of that question. "Not that I'm aware of… it's just raining."
"Ah." Jethaniel glances down to his desk. "That is…" His lips twitch around unspoken words, and there's a small clearing of his throat before he resumes. "…likely for the best." He looks up once again, considering Daoi's state. Her wet, rained-upon state. "That is to say, the lack of incident. The rain itself… is, whether ideal or otherwise, not something which may be addressed with any efficacy. Deluge station is predictive, not alterative." Jethaniel observes Daoi for another moment. The facts as he is aware of them: She's wet from rain. She's standing in his office. Therefore… "Would you like to have a seat?"
Daoi simple nods, trying to supresses a smile at the halting first sentence from her old mentor's mouth. Biting her lower lip is a successful (more or less) way of doing so this time around at least. The offer of a seat in her state is met with some raised eyebrows and a shrug as she makes her way over to sit and promptly make the chair damp. Luckily it's not cushioned, should dry easier that way. "Sure…" is followed by an awkward pause.
Thus, the facts as Jethaniel is aware of them alter to include the fact that she (while still wet from the rain) is now sitting in his office. In addition, portions of the office floor - as well as that chair - are now also, transitively, wet from the rain. Conversations had in his office do, however, tend to begin so, at least in those circumstances where they are not sufficiently prompt as to be conducted from the doorway, and as such Jethaniel has advanced the state of the social interaction to a point such that… "Ah." The issue would appear to be that the social interaction is not forthcoming; while an intentionality has been implicitly expressed, there is no social context sufficiently developed. There also exists the issue of the continued shedding of partially absorbed water, but Jethaniel is less concerned by that at present. More concerning to him is a sense of familiarity he has in regarding this visitor. Her age is such that the intervening turns have produced a significant change, and yet there does exist a certain… something… which causes his brow to furrow as he attempts the process of recollection prior to any attempt at further social engagement.
It's probably not quite so often that the normal process of these conferences with the Stweard includes mositure, at least this sort. Who knows, sometimes there might be crying. It's enough to throw most people off, luckily the steward's mind is so well, procedural. Until the hint of recognation fails to bloom. "So… I was wondering… could I get my job back? Maybe? Well, kind of my job. After all, I'm not an apprentice anymore. Well, at least I assume I'm not. Still have the knot and all, but that's probably just because nobody could find me to take it away." And apparently awkward silences produce babbling.
Even the dolphineers tend to make use of a towel prior to their consultations with the Steward - at least, those consultations conducted within his office. When he comes to meet them in their selected environment, the expectations are somewhat different. Differing expectations - and changes in circumstances - may be part of the reason for Jethaniel's initial difficulty in recognition. He has seen this face, or at least, a prior iteration thereof. He has not seen this face while seated in the office of Steward, given that the last time he saw this face, he was not Steward. This face has, evidently, seen him, or at least believes it (or, more correctly, the person to whom it is associated) has had a job whose return he could mediate. Jethaniel's eyebrows rise slightly for that, inquisitive as he adds this to his considerations, but it's the mention of a (former) apprenticeship that makes his eyes widen somewhat, conducted a rapid secondary assessment that still does not pay any particular heed to the aqueous state of this meeting. "Daoi?" The tone is perhaps slightly too incredulous to be a statement of fact, thought the speculation is made with a high degree of probability. His eyes return toward their usual diameter, and his mouth curves slightly up at the corners. "…knots are, while correlative, not causational."
Daoi has been fidgeting more thana little in the chair while the processes go on in the man's brain. Eventually she's sitting on her hands rocking just slightly back and forth, at least that way the hands aren't tugging at the end of her dripping braid. As the recognition sets in there's a hint of a smile but the twitching doesn't exactly stop. After all, he has all sorts of reason to be more than a little miffed, or even angry with her. Turns can help dull that, but in this case they can also make the situation much worse when they're /that/ many years, and then coming back asking for a job is a bit well, ballsy. But then there's a hint of a smile from the man and she can't help but grin. "Glad to see you're still a stickler for your technicalities, being a Steward hasn't dulled your brain."
"Only when relevant." The question may arise under what circumstances Jethaniel does not find a technicality relevant. "In this case, it is. The Hall provides knots as a signal of rank, which exists as a proxy for skill. It is, however…" One corner of his mouth quirks further, tending toward a wry smile. "…unlikely they would consider it appropriate for you to retain any such signifier, given the… interval during which you have conducted no formal study of the craft." Jethaniel leans back in his chair, and his eyebrows arch. "I would hope the turns have not been entirely lacking as regards educational experiences?"
"But they're always relevant." It's true in her mind anyhow, not that she always wants to agree with people arguing technicalities, doesn't mean they aren't. "Probably not… not sure they wanted me in the craft anyhow, least not by the time they sent me to you. I gave them the best excuse to discontinue my training at least… or just discontinued it myself." Both are equally true. At the question about furthering her education she does perk up, sitting straighter in the chair and hands becoming unpinned again. "Oh! I learned all sorts of things about seacrafting… not too relevant to previous learning, at least not directly." There's a pause and a rather unmissable smirk before she continues. "But I learned a measure of discipline and the importance of hard work. Something many other people attempted to teach me, and promptly failed."
Jethaniel smiles as he inclines his head to acknowledge Daoi's assertion regarding those technicalities, and does not further argue such points. He frowns slightly at her perspective regarding the Hall's prior inclinations toward her, and the discontinuation of her training receives a slow nod. "The Hall is fallible," he notes. His tone is factual, his expression neutral, but it eases once more toward a smile as she explains her educational endeavors since taking the matter into her own hands. Jethaniel's lips twitch with something not quite said aloud as Daoi expresses that irrelevance, and as she continues after, his eyebrows lift. "Indeed?" His tone is mild, and a smile still lurks around the corners of eyes and mouth. "It is certainly the case that some instructors are ill-suited to the tasks before them." Jethaniel takes a moment to put his hands in front of him on the desk with the fingertips touching before he continues. "Personally, I have found interdisciplinary connections to be valuable; what is obvious in one domain may, when applied to a disparate one, present an innovation."
Do note that Daoi said 'not directly', there was some acknowledgement of potential relevance. After all, they're discussing technicalities and that's one right there. "Can you blame the hall? I mean, I may have had the brain for the craft, but not the work ethic…." there's a pause as she considers for a moment and adds "… or uh, ability to what was it 'function in a traditional learning environment'" Admittedly, they were probably right, and she's not currently arguing that. Though the fact she was quoting someone else was made obvious by the somewhat mocking tone. "And obviously an inability to respect authority." Ahem. "See? That's why I like you, you're not stodgey and stuck in your ways… well, you're a bit stuck in your ways but not the same way."
Some technicalities are more conducive to in-depth discussion than others. It is a complex equation involving both relevance and personal inclinations… as, perhaps, is the suitablity of a person to a craft. Jethaniel turns one hand, a rotary gesture of equivocation regarding the attribution of blame to the hall. "The traditional learning environment is not without its flaws." He says, despite having not only made it through the experience as a student but taught within its confines. "It is unlikely the Hall could have provided you one within which you were capable of success according to their standards; thus…" A wry smile. "…your decision to discontinue the experiment." Jethaniel's smile fades as his gaze lifts - apparently to observe an unmarked portion of his wall. "Any authority that may not be derived from first principles is problematic. Rank is merely a signifier." His eyes return to Daoi once more. "…which may produce its own authority due to cultural inertia." There's a re-emergence of his smile. "I attempt to have a suitable coefficient of friction."
"Exactly!" oh dear, the man seems to have hit a point that Daoi agrees with a little too much. "And what elicits respect from one person isn't always the same as to another." And she discontinued the experiement all right, and went off on her own. "That's not to say I didn't respect you, I totally did… and do." There's actually more than a hint of sincerity there, it's not just a ploy to get in his good graces. "I'd never have made it as far as I did if you hadn't ended up my mentor… I just wasn't really mature enough to stick with it."
Jethaniel inclines his head to Daoi. "The conveyance of such respect may also vary significantly." He leans back in his chair and exhales slowly as she continues. "Education is not the same as progress according to a standard, merely… correlated. That said, I am glad to have contributed to that process in your regard." Jethaniel smiles. "…and also that it has continued since your departure. You have, however, returned." He frowns thoughtfully, a hand turning to tap the fingers along his desk in sequence. "Though I believe we have established that a return to apprentice seems… implausible."
Daoi is back to fidgeting, this time not with her hands though, instead her feet are tapping back and forth as a single unit with one stacked on top of the other. "Yeah… not sure I'd want to be an apprentice again anyhow. That's not to say I don't want to learn more but… I'd rather do it without well, the craft breathing down my neck." And they'd probably prefer it that way as well, right? "But… being a steward. If you had any work to do of any sort…"
"Being Steward," Jethaniel says, "I have a wide variety of work which requires doing." He smiles. "Some of which would likely be quite unsuited to you. While it might be interesting to see you negotiate field divisions, it would likely not be advantageous." His fingers tap once more, a slow and thoughtful gesture. "However. There does exist a tendency for various physical aspects of the Weyr to cease functioning." Like those hot springs, for instance. "If you were inclined to work toward their repair, there do exist openings in maintenance." Jethaniel smiles. "The job is fairly self-directed."
Daoi watches the other rather intently after she asks her question, or makes her request. The amount of smiles she's getting is promising, though one thing she has learned (and perhaps even long before her seafaring adventures) is that smiles don't always mean the answer will be positive. "No… I imagine not" the girl still can't help but grin as he expresses his thoughts on what she isn't fit for, especially when he makes the emphasis on interesting. There's a visable perk, as in she sits quite straight in her chair all of a sudden when he mentions the potential for maintenance work. "Oh… I do well with self-direction, I have a tendency towards that anyhow."
Smiles may, in fact, be worse than a lack thereof; there exist a wide variety of reasons why one might be amused, and while in a world of perfect empathy, such reasons would be applicable to both parties in an interaction, this world is not so pure as that. Jethaniel's smile, however, broadens as Daoi expresses her general inclinations. "Quite. It is results-oriented." If it's broke, fix it. "You would be expected to select from approved maintenance requests according to your capabilities and obtain assistance as required." Jethaniel lowers his gaze from Daoi, opening one of his desk's drawers and looking around inside. "Further improvement of those capabilities is encouraged." He finds what he's looking for, a blue and orange Xanadu knot only barely more complicated than a basic resident's, and extends it.
Daoi has probably forgotten she's drenched at this point, there have been other things to concentrate on after all. It's quite possible that chilly realization will hit her again shortly, but now on to more important things. "That sounds like a good system…" especially when results can be obtained in /her/ way, not someone elses idea of 'correct'. The knot might be reached for a little too eagerly, but unless he hangs onto it it's happily snatched. Hey, currently she's lacking any sort of knot. And usually it's best when you're an adult to have some sort of employment if you're planning on trying to take advantage of a weyr's hospitality. And… perhaps towels.
Jethaniel makes no attempt to retain that knot, and as such, it is soon located in Daoi's hand instead of his. If this was not his intended outcome, he could have kept it within his desk. His hand, now empty, returns to a place in front of him, and it is at this juncture - when Daoi may have forgotten about it - that he appears to actually notice her wet state. "I… expect you are aware of the Weyr facilities." Including towels. He nudges the drawer shut. "You may request a cot in the dormitories or a shared room; those assignments are made by the headwoman."
Daoi nods quickly at the mention of facilites as she glances at her clothes and then the knot. Hrm… perhaps not putting it on now would be a good plan. Not that the colors would run, the people who make them think of such things after all. "And… the headwoman would be…." It's been awhile.
"The headwoman at present is Darsce." Jethaniel smiles. "Her office is adjacent; if she is not present therein, she can likely be found within the caverns." He pauses for a moment, his expression thoughtful - perhaps he's iterating through the tasks of welcoming a new arrival to her role, or perhaps… "It is good to see you again." …a returning one.
Daoi nods quickly and gets to her feet. After tugging at the damp pants to readjust them slightly (the wet fabric has a tendency to get stuck on her knees) she glances down at herself. "Maybe I'll get cleaned up first… then find her." After all, people who are not well, Jethaniel might be a little upset by water dripping all over their floor. And, one should make good first impressions after all. "You have no idea how good it is to see you." And find out that he's in a position to give her a job. "I'd better stop getting your floor wet." Though really, that damage has been done. And with that she heads for the door with a bit of a skip to her step, and disappears out. Moments later it's closed as an after thought.