Xanadu Weyr - Caverns
A massive cavern in it's own right, this one has been skillfully adapted for human habitation. The high ceilings have been painted a light, soft ivory, as are the walls where numerous tapestries hang to provide brilliant color and insulation from the stone. The floor has been left in its natural state, pale pink granite speckled through with glittering mica and dark flecks of basalt, leveled carefully but kept sufficiently rough to avoid slips.
The cavern itself is loosely divided into areas, each one set up to be suitable for some segment of the Weyr's population. The most frequently occupied area, however, is the one near the Kitchens where tables of varying sizes provide a place to sit down and eat or chat and a buffet of consumables is almost always kept stocked. Its plain that on most days, this area wouldn't accommodate anywhere near the full population of the Weyr and equally plain that on such occasions when a formal meal is laid out, tables are appropriated from all the other areas.
A big fireplace is set into the wall near the Kitchens as well, several comfortable chairs nearby providing haunts for elderly residents or riders who like a good view of all that happens. Rugs cover the floor in strategic spots, all of them abstract or geometric in design and most in the softly neutral colors of undyed wool.
Exits lead off in all directions, a big archway the largest and that leading outside. Shallow stairs to the west lead to the offices and administration area while tunnels to the east lead to the infirmary, kitchen and resident's quarters. Southwards, a sloping tunnel leads down to the hot springs and southwest is a wide tunnel, carefully roped off to avoid accidents.
The combination of chilly early morning air and light rain has Xanadu's living caverns all but empty. The breakfast tables are just starting to be stocked with a smattering of foodstuffs, though few people mill around waiting at this hour. Among them is the Beastcraft apprentice Amelia, a lone occupant of a table which she's already stocked with a plate full of the earliest kitchen offerings- and a large mug of klah next to a little plate of sugar and cream.
Ducking raindrops, D'son comes in from the chilly outside with his jacket showing the signs of his dart across meadow and clearing to get to the caverns. The bronzerider pauses on the threshold to sweep a hand through his hair, makes a face at the clinging dampness and wipes his hand off on his pants. Moving forward, the klah is a draw, but he detours a little when he catches sight of Amelia. "Hey, good morning."
Hers is a figure that hasn't been seen for a LONG time around Xanadu. But neither has Phylicia's form changed overly much. There's a forested green resting somewhere in the early morning's light outside, stretched out like a feline even in the rain. Some might remember her being a bit of a socially quiet one, and that doesn't seem to have changed much either. She stands just inside the caverns door unobtrusively, watching as other people start to trickle in, silent. She'll probably seperate herself from the doorway shortly. Maybe.
A'deo is not an unfamiliar face in Xanadu. Or at least not an unfamiliar knot. Auburn hair neatly in place despite the recent wearing of a helmet probably doesn't often go unnoticed to. The transport wingsecond of Fort has entered the structure ladies and gentlemen. He's exceptionally bright of spirits today, taking leave of the klah mug which he'd beelined for with a bounce in his step. A bounce that exudes a sense of gracefulness and doesn't spill a drop of klah. He doesn't notice much of the others, even of Amelia at first as he goes to take a seat at her table. "Oh." Right, might want to ask. "Er, can I sit here, miss?" Miss? Well, better than nothing perhaps?
And then there's someone who not only is an unfamiliar face, but is glancing around like the area isn't all that familiar to him either. Admittedly R'lin spots the serving area quickly enough and seems to instantly know exactly where he's going. He grabs a plate quickly enough but then stares at the options for a little bit, lips pursed. At least he seems to find some of it acceptable as the plate is gradually filled.
Amelia is rather understandably bleary at this hour, and doesn't take notice of the people trickling in. Her eyes are all for the steaming mug of klah into which she's begun stirring a large amount of sugar and cream. Her early morning trance is broken when D'son comes to greet her- and then she's a bit surprised and her own greeting is interrupted when A'deo appears at the table. "Good morning D's- uh, uhm, er, sure?" She stumbles over the words, and covers by testing the flavor of the klah she's been stirring.
"How're you this—" is the start of D'son's greeting, also interrupted by A'deo's arrival and he looks up blinking a couple of times, offers a polite nod. "Xanadu's duties to Fort," is the formal greeting there and he looks over toward the serving table which is getting busier. "Save me a seat?" he requests of Amelia before he steps away to get some breakfast. Not gone long, it's only a few minutes before he returns.
It takes Phylicia a few more moments of lurking in the doorway before the young woman is moving away from the doorway, headed not towards the klah pot, but instead for some of the juices that have been freshly prepared by the kitchen staff, and one of the sweeter pasteries filled with redfruit, still warm to the touch. Only after grabbing those does she head towards the table that someone she knows is congreating at, among others as he finishes getting his own breakfast. "D'son, good morning!" It seems that formalities isn't high on Phy's list this morning, even though she looks perfectly awake and aware at the odd hour.
A'deo blinks at seeing the bronzerider too. Today is not his morning apparently. "Fort's to Xanadu, naturally." He returns before taking a seat. Let the locals chatter, he's got klah to drink. Oh yeah, and paperwork. He had just begun to take a sip of klah before he remembers, pulling the mug away from it's trajectory to his lips to reach into his jacket pocket and pull out some papers. His dark blue leathers actually fit very well with Xanadu's colors, a fact he seems to register as his eyes scan some of the surrounding banners. How'd he end up at Fort? The papers are on the table now but he's gazing about at the decor with an appraising eye. Someone's easily distracted this morning.
R'lin now has a plate fully stocked with food, and nowhere to go, so his sage eyes scan around the room once more. They settle on a certain table with a blink, and over he head. "A'deo? What're you doing here?" is asked with a little surprise but there's a smile nonetheless. Doesn't matter that the wingsecond has more reason to be in random locations than the greenrider. An empty chair is eyed and then the smile goes to the others gathered as well "Fort's duties" half the formality, and that's all.
"Of course, there's always space," Amelia tells D'son, smiling, as he goes to collect breakfast. Disconcerted by the sudden influx of people upon the once-silent table, she busies herself with the business of eating. She's a little reticent to chatter with unfamiliar company. She simply listens to the weyr to weyr greetings, clutching her klah and peering at the different faces.
Various pastries decorate D'son's plate upon return and he sets this and a fresh mug of klah down on the table. "Hey Phylicia. How're you? Not too wet this morning I hope." H pulls out a chair beside Amelia and settles down and peels his jacket off. Dels breaks a pastry in half and looks across the table at A'deo and R'lin curiously, especially as A'deo pulls papers out of his jacket. "Busy morning," the Xanadu bronzerider remarks conversationally.
Phylicia in fact doesn't look too wet at all, her hair remarkably dry, though her jacket sports wet spots. "Not too wet at all." She says lightly with a bit of a grin. "Not that I haven't been soaked to the bone before. Often." What with her escapades into forested areas in pursuit of her studies. The young Ierne craftrider takes a look around the table then, at the gathering people. She doesn't pull a chair out for herself just yet, having not yet been invited for one after all. "But I'm fine, if busy, thank you. How about the rest of you?" … Wait? She's trying to include the others?
A'deo looks around at his name. "Er? Oh! Hello R'lin!" He raises a perfectly arched russet brow at the question, however. "What do you mean? I'm doing my job." Right. Paperwork! He spreads out those papers before him, looking over the contents a moment before locating the one he was looking for. Drawing it out and repiling the lot he looks back up. "Now as for you?" Still said to R'lin of course. He reaches for his mug of klah again only to be distracted once more by the Xanadu rider. "Busy busy, like always these days." It's an equally conversational response, not giving more information than necessary but polite. However D'son is not the only one to ask.
"Mm…" It doesn't need a repeat does it. At last! The klah! He takes a deeeep guzzle of the stuff… and gags for the temperature. "Erack!" Not one of his better moments.
R'lin takes the lack of response as good enough and pulls out an empty chair, settling his plate down carefully before his butt hits the seat in an ungraceful plop. A'deo admittedly gets most of his attention as the bluerider is the only one he knows. Plus the others are in conversation or… listening to conversation anyhow. "Oh.. uh… just picking up some things. Figured it's been long enough since candidacy here that I might be allowed back." Plus apparently, breakfast, he's doing that too.
Amelia shifts over to allow D'son plenty of space, and can't stop a little chuckle from escaping when A'deo chokes on the klah, then regains her poise to offer, "Maybe you should probably let it cool down awhile… or put in some ice cubes," she grins across the table. "Not the brightest way to start a morning- or is it morning for you? Is Fort in a different time zone?"
"Hope it gets a little less busy, maybe," D'son says sincerely to A'deo, gives R'lin another little nod and pops a bite of pastry into his mouth, he chews carefully and given A'deo's reaction to the klah, blows across the surface a few times, not sipping yet. Just breathes in the steam. "Glad to hear things are good Phy" he tells the greenrider with a little smile, then nods at Amelia's remark. "Fort's behind by a couple of hours, yeah."
Phylicia doesn't have to worry about burning her tongue on hot klah, since that's not what she's drinking. Instead she takes a sip of her juice before she nibbles on a corner of her own pastry. "How have things been here at Xanadu, D'son?" She asks the bronzerider, finally settling herself down in a chair with a half-shy smile for all the others at the table. "The Craftmaster has been keeping me so busy trying to make up ground. Talk about a woman irritated about losing apprentices to dragons." There's a slight, humorous roll of her chocolate brown eyes.
A'deo is all about attention! Except when he does things like choking on hot klah. He gives Amelia a stung look, almost pouty. "Well it -would- be… seeing as it's northern hemisphere and west." It's almost a bit mocking. But hey, she laughed at him! The bluerider grumpily shuffles his papers and turns his full attention on R'lin instead. At least Fort has -manners-. "Long enough? Have you not been back since then? How long ago was that?" He stirs his klah periodically with a finger, obviously to wait till the temperature cools. Not like it'll help now with a scalded mouth.
R'lin slides his as yet untouched glass of juice over towards A'deo with a smile that's at least mainly just sympathetic. "Here." It took some juggling but the man managed both a glass and a mug with his plate. Luckily mugs have handles and his isn't more than half full of the brown liquid so it had been much easier not to spill. He's still apparently proving this 'manners' thing right, or perhaps it's all a show. "Uh… over nine turns… and I've been back when I was in Roc, but not much. Long enough not to recognize any Xanadu resident gathered at the table, or at least really remember them.
Amelia catches A'deo's sting and clams up instantly, staring down at her plate with pink cheeks. "I can get you some ice if it'd make you feel better." As soon as the notion is said out loud, she's out of the chair and on the way to fetch ice before he can even say whether or not he wants them.
A'deo's behavior pops D'son's eyebrows up as his mug lifted to take a careful sip of his own klah now it's cooled at least a little. "A lot earlier there," he says quietly and as Amelia rises to get the ice, he reaches over aiming to give her arm a brief, reassuring touch. "Here? Oh you know, the usual, stubborn holders, missing ships, Niva kicking stubborn holders out of the Weyr." He tries to make that humorous, accompanies the statement with a grin.
Phylicia pauses for a moment, her mug of juice paused halfway to her lips. "Right. So… I should be happy that Fraille has me running around doing craft business then?" She questions the Xanaduian rider, not quite laughing at the description of things around the Weyr. "Sounds almost normal, all in all." There's a small pause but she doesn't seem inclined to continue just yet, instead taking her sip of juice and nibbling a bit more.
A'deo waves off the glass of juice with a 'thanks' before he's opening his mouth to say something else. But Amelia is off for… ice? Or just running away? "Er?" A'deo's face contorts in uncertainty, looking oddly cute for his youthful complexion. After all, he looks almost ten turns younger than he really is. "Nine turns…" He remarks, turning back to R'lin. "That's a decent time." He thinks a moment. "I'd… impressed Xav for a turn then. Huh… Wow… has it really been 10 turns? Well, almost 11… yeesh." He looks pouty again. "I feel old!" He whines vaguely.
R'lin tilts his head slightly, peering at D'son now for a moment at the mention of stubborn holders.Eventually there's just a little bit of a shrug and a slight smirk as he reveals that the Weyrwoman has been kicking them out. It's less amused than one might expect a smirk to be though, eyes not quite caught up in the mirth. A finger stretches out to nudge the glass just an inch closer to Deo, now settled right in front of him. "Take it, or you'll soon be sucking on an ice cube once she gets back." Or perhaps the ice can go into the juice, would be a good compromise. "You're not old." is accompanied with an eyeroll as his fork stabs at some fruit on his plate.
Amelia pauses at the contact from D'son, but then she rushes off to gather ice. She's back in a jiffy with a cup of ice cubes. She sits back down and slides it over to A'deo wordlessly and smiles a little before returning to her breakfasting. She peers at A'deo. "You don't look that old." Friendly or trying to make up for chuckling, you be the judge.
"Maybe?" D'son tells Phy. "I mean, that depends on what Fraille's got you doing I guess and if you find it interesting." He munches on a bit more pastry and squints across the table at the Fortians like he's trying to figure out this 'old' thing on two people who are visibly under thirty. "That's a long time to be away from a place," Dels remarks. "But I don't get back to Ista much anymore either." A little shrug follows and he smiles over at Amelia as she comes back.
"Mostly just re-learning my craft for a third - or is it fourth? - time now." Phylicia supplies to D'son, leaning back into her chair, watching Amelia trot away for those ice cubes. A'deo is also given a look for a moment before she shakes her head and returns her attention back to D'son. "I'm convinced that she'll never let me advance to Journeyman rank." That flippant mouth on her and all, seems to get her into trouble. "So around doing my own studies I do what She needs me to." Being at Ierne she has little in the way of traditional duties, it would seem. Either that or she struck a deal somewhere.
A'deo eyes the juice just in time to watch a glass of ice plunk down next to it. Blink blink. "Mm…" He says non-committally to the age comments before moving the papers aside and taking the two glasses close to himself. He slowly pours some juice into the ice glass, watching it trickle over the cubes with interest. Yeah, Deo's just a bit tired. Then, as if electrocuted, and if anyone knows his dragon's mindvoice it's not that different, A'deo sits up, knocking the table. "Shells! Gotta go!" He grabs his papers and runs out with no explanation.
R'lin blinks as suddenly he's left all alone with the strangers as A'deo pratically bolts off. Well, that an his breakfast. The juice gets snagged back, what's left in the glass at least and he takes a sip. "Wait.. Ista?" the rider gets peered at for a moment. "I at least manage to make it there regularly…" His eyes search the man's face for a moment, searching for something.
"Huh," Amelia mutters when A'deo bolts ofgf, though she's visibly relieved when he's gone. Half-tuned into the other conversations floating around the table, she turns a quizzical expression on Phylicia, "Why do you have to keep relearning your craft?"
A'deo heads off and D'son only grins a little, likely recognizin the 'dragon called' look. "Given how long you've been at it, I hope they figure on walking you soon, Phy," Dels says sincerely and has a bit more of his breakfast while R'lin speaks. "Mm, yeah, Ista Weyr. I was born there, raised in the lower caverns and impressed Inimeth there." D'son looks across the table at R'lin likewise faintly perplexed. "Wait … you were Rahlin, weren't you?"
Phylicia's hands grab for her drink as the table is knocked, looking vaguely startled as A'deo goes bolting from the caverns. Ah huh? D'son gets a look as she does a little bit of calculating of the turns. "Well, I've only actually been at it for about… six or seven turns? And the last three have been juggling rider duties along with the craft ones." A bit of a hamper there. Then Amelia gets a bit of a non-commital measuring look before the young woman offers the beastcrafter a tentative grin. "Because I keep letting my mouth run ahead of my brain and saying the wrong things to the Craftmaster." Not that she goes against the rules specifically…!
R'lin can't help it, there's a sudden snicker. "Yeah, that's not a good way to advance in a craft, least you've managed not to get kicked out, so you can't be saying things /that/ bad." Oh yes, the greenie has simply inserted himself into the conversation at this point, why not? He's got an entire meal to eat. Blink. "Yeah…" comes with his name being spoken, head tilting slightly. "I'm sorry… you seem vaguely familiar but I don't really remember you." Slightly sheepish, yes. "Was busy getting into trouble and hanging out with Cal I'm sure."
Amelia furrows her brow at the answer and peers at Phylicia, pursuing the line of questions. "Why continue apprenticing right where the Craftmaster is, then? There's plenty of other journeymen and masters to study under…" she trails off and listens to the exchange between R'lin and D'son, in the meantime munching on the pastries on her plate.
"Delson was my name before," D'son explains with a little wry grin. "Badri raised me in the caverns. ANd I think I remember a little bit of running around when we were kids? Though I went to stay with my grandparents when I was eleven, so." His shoulders lift, drop again. He casts a brief look over at Amelia, then back toward Phylicia. "She's right about the options, Phy. You know, so you don't have to keep starting over?"
"My specialty is botony." Phylicia supplies to Amelia. "The number of … capable mentors for that specialty is few. And the Craftmaster is admittedly one of the best … 'available' … ones." There's a little bit of resignation to Phylicia's tone. And R'lin gets a look from the greenriding craftrider as well, one eyebrow showing the promise of a quirk shortly. "I've gotten suspended before. During candidacy here." And that's as far as she's going into that story before she lets a sigh out. "I don't /mean/ to irritate her. I just … do. Inadvertently." D'son gets a look as well. "The options just aren't as knowledgable though." And after all, knowledge is what crafters are after.
R'lin simply gives a little shake of his head at D'son, a rather apologetic expression on his face. "Sorry… I wasn't at Ista till I was eight or nine so…" only a couple turns and he really doesn't remember the boy. "You seem vaguely familiar though." is admitted. That's all he's going to get though. "I mostly hung out with Varryn and Cal." Head tilts slightly and grin. "My friend could have used you around when her dragon got obsessed with plants then, sadly he's out of that phase now." And jumping back to the poor botanist.
Amelia nods slowly as Phylicia answers, listening quietly. "I see… I guess we're luckier in the BeastCraft. Lots of really talented mentors. I suppose I will have to maybe go somewhere else once I've stepped up a rank, if I keep on my own path- I'm wanting to study healing animals, so I suppose it's a little related to botany, because we do use a lot of plants to heal with, too. What all /do/ you study? Poison?" her eyes flicker to D'son and R'lin as she's talking and she briefly smiles at their conversation.
"Oh, well I suppose that would kind of put a crimp on choices," D'son says sympathetically to Phylicia then shoot R'lin a grin. "So we probably had a little bit of overlap. I was at the Smithcraft with my grandparents until I was thirteen, came back and um, well impressed Inimeth when I was fifteen. And now that you mention it … it /has/ been almost ten turns." And that seems to take Dels aback a bit.
"While that might be more fitting to her personality, it's not quite as morbid or dangerous as that." Phylicia says, barely keeping the dislike for the word out of her tone. Apparently poison and Phy don't mix. Idealist? Maybe. "It's more like I study what plant does what, what a proper dosing would be, and what an overdose would consist of or an ineffective dosage." The young healer pauses for a moment. "Sometimes we even branch into the best growing conditions. I know the Craftmaster has a greenhouse she takes care of." D'son gets a bit of a grin. "Tenebrous was my first mentor. I don't know if you remember him." You know, the person she stole the long coat idea from and the slightly more hermit-like habits including running off into the woods?
"Would be a handy thing to know though…" comes from R'lin at the talk of poisons. "At least knowing the symptoms and antidotes. Accidental poisoning even, people eating the wrong wild berries and such." He's making the best of his invasion in the conversation, after all the piece of toast he's nibbling on is nearly the last of his food now. "Yeah… isn't it weird how time goes? Least we're only growing older, and haven't hit 'old' yet."
Amelia eats and listens, adding, "Funny thing about wild berries, some of the critters I've worked with could eat anything and everything, but once one of my friends had the notion to taste test a plant that runners were eating out in the woods, and she was quite sick for several days after," her expression goes a little dark at the memory. Then she shrugs and connects a dot D'son had left early, "Ah! So that's why you could be the Weyrleader so young- that's quite a young age to find yourself on the sands, it seems to me."
"Knowing your plants is pretty important. And your bugs. Especially in the jungle," D'son says thoughtfully. "So many things can kill you in the jungle if you're not careful." Cheery. Not. But then he laughs at Amelia's comment. "Actually, I wasn't even the youngest in my clutch, Amelia. There were a couple of other weyrlings who were younger." He finishes off the contents of his plate, curls his hands around his mug. "As for Tenebrous, I've heard a lot about him from different people but I've never really met him. Did you learn a lot from him, Phylicia?" R'lin's remark sees D'son nodding. "Slips by before you know it," he says thoughtfully and is silent for a bit, seemingly lost in thought behind his mug.
"I might get into the study of poisons whenever I get around to senior journeyman or master status, but that knowledge isn't really something that should really be publically know. After all. If you know how to cure it, you also know how to cause it. The less people that know /that/ information, the better." Idealist for sure, Phylicia is. The craftrider gives Amelia a bit of an incredulous look for a moment. "Excuse me for saying so, but that was stupid of her." Her attention is back to D'son again, and also taking note of R'lin. "Tenebrous was a good - if … strange - mentor. It's why I'm not so concerned about my 're-education' at the Hall. It's more like a drawn out review, frankly."
R'lin pops the last bite of food into his mouth with a fork and settles it back down onto the plate with the quietest of clattering. "Well, good luck with the review, I'm impressed with anyone who has the attention span." He most definitly doesn't. Getting to his feet he collects the dishes and grins at the surrounding. "Hope all of you have a good day." With that he's sneaking off to dispose of dishes and do whatever it is he came here for.
Amelia shrugs at Phylicia. "Yeah, of course it was. It wasn't entirely her own idea, one of the older apprentices didn't much like her and already knew about the plant and encouraged it. I'm not sure that one even realized it could've killed her, but that was when I was apprenticing at the Hall, so we were close enough to a master Healer to fix her up good as new." And for D'son, she has her own incredulous look, but then shrugs. "I guess I keep forgetting dragonriders can impress really young. I've been so busy with all the other animals on Pern, I don't think about them too much. Least, not until I started thinking they sound like music," she grins a little at D'son, though her gaze follows R'lin's departure.
"Clear skies," D'son offers over to R'lin. "Hope to catch you again sometime. Maybe we'll cross paths at Ista." The bronzerider nods once briefly then leans back in his chair as the Fortian rider departs. "Youngest candidates are pretty much around the same age as starting apprentices," D'son explains, "though it seems like we're usually a little bit older than that at least. And see, now you've got plenty of good reasons to think about dragons more. Music and all."
Phylicia can only shake her head after saying 'goodbye' to R'lin with a bob of her head and a small waggle of fingers before her attention is back to Amelia. "I don't like people who try to do pranks with plants they don't understand. Now see, a little judious use to cause a rash or diaherra…" And then the crafter clamps her mouth shut, a flush spreading over her cheeks. No. The bullies in her candidate class? Those little rashes they broke out in whenever they misbehaved? Not her. Not her at all. Unproven! But the topic seems to be switching, and on her day off, she'll go with the flow. "They really can Impress young. I mean, how old was N'shen, D'son? Thirteen-ish?" But Amelia gets another slightly curious look. "Like music?"
Amelia turns her gaze back to D'son, smiling a bit. "Yeah, I suppose," she starts to say something but is distracted by Phylicia. Her eyes narrow, one eyebrow raising just a bit in curiousity. "Why would y-," she cuts herself off, "Nevermind, I can imagine why. Did you Stand and Impress young too?"
Phy's comments about 'a little rash' just draw a grin from D'son. "So long as you know what you're doing," he says evenly then nods. "Yeah, N'shen was thirteen or so. And ah — you know, dragons, crooning and stuff. It's kind of musical," Dels fills in.
Phylicia pauses for a moment, considering their words. "Yes… yes I can see that, now." She says, nodding her head before D'son gets one of her classic impish grins. "I knew full well what I was doing." She assures the bronze rider before she shakes her head to the other topic of conversation. "Naw, I wasn't that young when I stood. I was … sixteen or seventeen. Fauikith is almost three turns, and I'm just twenty."
Amelia grins. "They do some really lovely, the biggest voiceboxes ever. I'm a sucker for a deep voice." Then she ohs at Phylicia. "So you're not much older than me, then. I turned 19 not a month ago." She pauses to finish the last of her breakfast, a thoughtful expression on her face. "I can't imagine myself impressing three turns ago- it would have thrown such a kink in my plans. Well, it would even now, it seems like Impression would throw things off quite a bit. I wouldn't have time to ride runners…"
"I'll bet," D'son says good-naturedly to Phylicia and drinks down the last of the contents of his mug. "Impressing got me back on track," Dels admits. "I couldn't figure myself out. Now Inimeth flying Kilaueth, that put kinks into a bunch of things. But I wouldn't really change anything. I'm ttwenty-three and that's still young. Plenty of time for the things I dreamed about when I was younger."
Phylicia actually laughs. "It was certainly a kink in mine. I wasn't planning on Impressing. I wasn't thinking I ever would." Then again, there are a few things which have happened which she thought never would. "I was going to apprentice at the Healer Hall, and learn about botony and herb lore, and then when I got to journeyman status - probably senior journeyman - I was going to see about having a second specialty in general healing practices." There's a pause then, as she considers her enthusiastic stream of words. "I might have to drop the ambition of having two specialities." There's another pause, as she looks down into her mostly empty mug of juice. "You find time for the things that you want to do, though. Honest. Especially after they've finished growing."
"I do admit it'd be nice to understand this thing my brother and mom and now you've tried to explain," she says a little wistfully, nodding at D'son since he'd tried to explain it another morning. Then she shrugs. "But at the same time, I wouldn't like having to live with a whole bunch of other folks in the same room for extended periods… and having a whole different set of duties? I like to think Dad needs my help with his runners and the healing work." She shrugs again, lips pursed slightly. "Whatever. I don't see it happening for me anyway, I can speak just fine with all the fuzzy and feathered animals on Pern, I don't need another mind inside my own." She stops talking, expression a little sheepish for the babbling. "Speaking of those duties, gotta get out to the stables and take advantage of the rest of the weyr being in this room."
"If you get the chance … apparently impressing a firelizard is at least a hint, that helps to understand," D'son says and piles his dishes together. "It's not so bad, the barracks," he says with a shrug. "But I was used to having to share space a lot in the lower caverns at Ista. But you know if you've found what you really love, no sense in not doing it. I should really stop just dabbling and actually ask the smiths or the tech craft about joining," Dels says thoughtfully then gives a little shake of his head. "It's easier to find time for that kind of thing when you're not Weyrleader or Weyrwoman," the bronzerider notes and as Amelia excuses herself, he pushes to his feet. "Mind company on the walk over?"
Having said what she's wanted to apparently, Phylicia slips into an unassuming sort of silence, merely nodding when both Amelia and D'son get up from the table. No, she's going to enjoy her day back at Xanadu and just sort of wander around. Something of the sort. After all, it's been far too long since she's been here. "You two have a wonderful day today, hmm?" She offers the both of them, only standing up to go get a touch bit more food and drink for herself.
Amelia nods at D'son, smile returning. "Uh, sure, if you want… I'm just going to the stables." She gathers her own dishes- there are several to balance what with all the klah-sweetener she had to mix in. She's poised enough not to drop anything, and her smile is directed toward Phylicia. "You enjoy your time back at Xanadu… it's really nice, even if we've got the political issues going on… good luck with the reviewing; we're just the right age to be early journeymen, you know." Her smile is wry and there is humor in her eyes.
"Maybe I can say hi to Journey," D'son claims and nods along with her words to Phylicia. "Have a good day today, Phy. And good luck with Fraille." Amelia's words on journeymen earn a laugh. "Yeaaah well, not everyone has the best timing," he says cheerily enough and steps away to ditch his dishes, then fall into step with Amelia for the walk over to the stables.