Xanadu Weyr - Beach
The unerring range of subdued white rises and falls in a multitude of sandy dunes, creating an endless amount of tiny valleys constantly demolished and rebuilt by the frequent arrival or departure of a dragon. Smoothing out as it slopes gently to the edge of the deep blue water, the sand darkens and a shell here and there stands out for children to collect. The beach itself is set along a low cliff - the height lessoning as one heads eastwards, blocking a portion of the beach from direct access.
The wide wide stretch of water opens up to the east, the far distant shore way beyond the horizon and the beach curves ever so slowly round to east and west, distant arms of land embracing the wind-ruffled Caspian Lake. East leads up to the mouth of the Rubicon River, where the protecting cliff is merely an arms length higher then the sand, and beyond that, a winding road leading out of Xanadu's territory. Westwards, the beach narrows as the cliff swings out, leaving a path wide enough for dragons in single file before cutting in to the sheltered cove designated the Weyrling Beach. However, cut in the cliff face to the north are a variety of rough, wide staircases, providing access to the clearing and to the meadow.
Summer is definitely here. The day is hot and muggy, with barely a breath of wind to stir the heavy air… and that's just the morning so far, the sun just about to overhead. With things so hot around here, it's no wonder the beach is a popular place. Weyrbrats are splashing and playing, dragons are bathing, dolphineers are training further out to sea. Off to one side, a green dragon is settled halfway down in the water. Unlike the other dragons, she doesn't seem to be bathing, exactly… more scowling, if the orange in her eyes as she regards the small set of people gathered before her is any guide. There's a Galaxy wingrider, a dragonhealer grade 3, and… Soriana. Sori is the one standing a step back, as rider, healer, and dragon all argue in conversation both silent and aloud.
Idrissa is down on the beach, one green firelizard over head and a blue riding on her shoulder. The beastcraft moves along humming to herself while she wanders in the shallows, she has on a bikini top, and shorts as bottoms, a towel over her shoulder which is what Ripley is settled upon so the claws don't dig into her shoulder. The green dragon off in the water is caught, and then she catches sight of the rider, dragonhealer and Soriana. She continues onwards, makes her way out of the water and inches closer to where her friend is. A wave is seen and she smiles to the other, though nothing is said while she curiously peers pondering what is going on.
"And this is the beach," says ka-el, who gestures to the aforementioned beach area from just of the meadow. He stands alongside a slightly shorter kid. A young teen of thirteen or fourteen with a hardy looking face that's spent too much time in the sun. Freckles seem to have been thrown on by an overwet paintbrush, and, unlike most teenagers, she looks onto the beach scene with a lackluster sort of look. Kale himself seems the same way, as if the task given to him couldn't possibly get any worse. And with nothing forthcoming from her, he absentmindedly waves. "Right. So.. that's it, really. You can find your way back to forges?" to which a resounding YES SIR is given. Meh. "You don' h-" But, too late! She's off, but he's glad for it and turns to walk onto the beach. It's hot. His task is complete. Time for swimming! He picks up his pace a little, already hopping and pulling off a boot. And a dragon is here! not uncommon. And dragon healers and riders and… Idrissa? And a Sori? Time to be nosy..
Haruhi and Toral are draped over a rock some distance up the shore, soaking up the warmth and sunlight and staying out of the way of things… though Toral, at least, is watching what his human's up to. He chirps as Rissa's lizards come into range, and Haruhi peers over, trills, then sprawls back again. Sori glances over to Idrissa and gives a little wiggle of her fingers, then pushes her hair back and returns her attention to the others as she listens. "…get the limb exercised," the dragonhealer is saying. The rider nods, then stares at his dragon for a long moment. She stares back at him, then snorts and lowers her head. The rider smiles, and looks back to the dragonhealer. "All right. She's ready." The dragon looks dubious still, but she doesn't protest. At least not out loud.
Willow catches sight of Toral and Haruhi and turns flying down to land next to the brown, Ripley soon flutters over to make four colors of firelizard be seen on the rock. Rissa pauses, her hands folding behind her while she chews on her lip, watching curiously, and pondering what is going on. Something about getting the limb exercised is picked up, and she ohs softly but that is all for the moment.
Oh hey everyone, where's Alloy? Not here, that's where! At least, not right now. The bronze is off doing whatever it is young bronzes do in their spare time, but he's only just a thought-call away! Kale gets one boot and sock off, then hippity hops on his bare foot to get the other. Pop! Off it comes, and out rolls a tiny piece of coal. "Huh.. Wonder how long that's been in there.." he muses as he tweezers it between two fingers. Cue laughter. Well, giggling is more like it, by swimsuit clad girls over thataway. Girls. Always in packs and pairs and giggling about secret things. Insert a grinflash and brisk walk away. To the water. To the girls who /don't/ giggle at him! Welll, only Idrissa is accessible now, and so he pauses by her. "Nice swim?" he smirks. "What've I missed? Is Soriana like, doing some amazing dragon fixing with secret bathwaters of the sea?"
The dragonhealer nods, and he turns to wade deeper into the water along the dragon's side. Soriana follows him, and when they get to the green's hindleg, he points to a pair of spots just above the knee and she places her hands there, flat against the muscles. The dragonhealer adjusts Sori's hand positioning slightly, then nods. "Now," he says back to the rider. "Ask her to just let us do the moving." The rider nods, and the dragonhealer kneels down in the water and takes the dragon's leg just below the knee. "Ready?" he asks. "Ready," says Soriana, looking at the dragon-leg under her hands, and "Ready," repeats the rider, looking his green in the eye.
Idrissa glances over Kale and offers him a smile. "Hey… An ya. I was wondering where abouts you was." A slight shrug is seen and she glances back to the ones in the water. "Ya.. I guess? I dono I just got here actually." She points out while chewing on her lip. "Maybe something up with a leg, as the dragonhealer talked about it needing to be moved an all. Do it with runners sometimes." Yes in the water too.
"Neat," Kale replies, sounding like it'd probably be something very neat if like … he was into animal healing. Which he obviously is not, as his high comes from fire and lifeless metal. But hey, he can pretend for the sake of his friends! They've likely pretended much for him. But it is sort of the actual sort of neat to see Soriana in action, and he can't help the smirk that finds its way on his mouth. "Hope no one gets crunched…" he adds as a sidenote, as getting crunched must likely be a everyday health hazard for dragonhealers. He glances over to Idrissa. "We should get her a prize or something. For helping for the first time? If this is her first time. Might not be."
Not like Soriana's paying attention to Kale's lack of specific enthusiasm for the task at hand (her hands, that is). She's more focusing on keeping those hands in place. There's a moment's pause, and then the dragon's leg is slowly moving, guided by the g3's hands. It appears her job is mostly… standing here. Even what the more experienced dragonhealer is doing doesn't seem to be doing much, just slowly swaying the leg. The dragon snorts again, her eyes flecking with orange as she shakes her head… but the rider keeps watching her, and she otherwise holds still.
Idrissa smirks as she hears Kale. "Why would someone get crunched?" She questions curious like and peers at him before she leans close to lean against him. An yes she is still wet from when she went swiming! "Runners have more of a chance to crunch you then a dragon would." She points out with an amused tone as she continues to watch what is going on, curious to say the least.
"Well, if the dragon is hurt, she's probably not thinking as straight as she normally would," remarks Kale oh so matter of factl, giving Idrissa a smug look. "And if they're /very/ injured, it's probably hard to calm them down. So. Crunching." Bones and blood and gore! That sort of crunching. … He hopes Soriana doesn't get crunched. :/ He looks back at the green, trying to hypothesize what just may be wrong, and what they're doing. "Looks like a very slow…one-legged dance," he whispers.
Soriana does not get crunched. Sorry to disappoint, and to utterly ruin the suspense. This particular dragon doesn't seem very injured, either - sure, she's making a few displeased noises, in with her head-tosses - but there's no actual blood and gore visible, and she doesn't roll over and crush the dragonhealers underneath her bulk. It's all good. A few more slow wriggles of that leg, and the senior dragonhealer lets go and rises to his feet. Sori lets go as well, and at a word from the other dragonhealer she takes out a jar and paintbrush and… paints the dragon's leg around the knee. The senior has a conversation with the rider, while the dragon's eyes slowly become less orange and she relaxes, and then the rider puts his hand on her shoulder and she limps out of the water, not putting her weight on the leg the healers were just working on. The dragonhealers watch her go, and then the more senior nods. "That's all for now. I'll see you at evening rounds." Sori nods, and as he heads away from the shore… she heads along it, toward Idrissa and, oh, hey, also Kale.
Idrissa is quiet for a moment, pondering that it seems. "Still, dragons don't hurt people… At least not on purpose, and I think that counts even when they are hurt." She thinks. "If there stretching out her leg, it sorta does. Moving a limb under the water is better then on land. It makes her use muscles she doesn't normally use, and the water helps keep her upright so she doesn't have to worry about falling." A soft hum escapes her. "Sometimes I'll take a runner into the water and get them to swim in what is shallow for them, especially if the might have a sore leg or something." It really does help! Rissa watches curiously as the dragon makes her way out from the water, limping some. "Well not we can ask her about it!"
Hmm! Paint by number, dragon edition? If Kale does have questions to ask, one will surely be … why did that guy just paint that dragon? Paint is for canvas, not dragon hide! And, alas, it all ends with everyone intact, and he steps back a little as the green limps through the water. He heard Idrissa, who does know a lot about this healing thing. Muscles are muscle. Bones are bone. He can imagine a dragon's skeleton being similiar to a runner or something. Of course she'd know. "Maybe you should be a dragon healer," he remarks to her, a half smirk present on his mouth.
Here's Sori, and all their questions can be answered. "Hey there," she says as she gets close enough. That mysterious jar has been put away. Is that a paintbrush in her pocket, or- …yes. Yes it is. But she's also happy to see them.
Idrissa blinks and smirks as she hears Kale. "Naw… I couldn't do that." This said with a soft tone. "I know more about runners after all." She takes in a soft breath and then waves at Sori. "Hey! Go on ask her Kale." HA, all on him.
Ask her? Well of course Idrissa would turn it on him! That's ok. Kale has something for her. He steps forward just one step, then grins nd waves an arm Soriana's way. "Soriana, hello! So glad to see you. Idrissa has sometin' she wanted to ask you, but… I think sh's too embarassed to ask herself. Luckily, I'm here," he says lavishly, giving his head a little bow. "So. Idrissa wanted me to ask you … *grand pause* … if you could explain to her where babies come from because she doesn't quite understand the process." Halo.
"What? Are you going to ask me out on a date?" Soriana asks Kale in a teasing tone. "Well, go on… just remember, the forge? Not actually romantic. Though it is interesting." She grins, then tilts her head as he begins to explain. "Oh, is that it? Well, that works too." Idrissa gets a grin. "The same holds for the stables, so you know." She nods sagely, then at the actual question, she laughs. "Well, you see…"
Idrissa ohs softly and peers at Kale while grinning. "You taking Soriana out on a date?" This questioned curiously, they still haven't talked about that have they?! She chuckles and nods with a smile to Soriana. "Hey, nothing wrong with the stables…" She offers with a faint murmur. Hearing Kale she eyes him a few moments and a faint huff escapes her. "Your a brat. No HE wanted to know if you was gona get crunched by that green."
Brow quirk. "The forge is romantic. 'Forge' means 'romantic' in….a long lost tongue from.. you know. Before." A long long time ago! And why does he know this? Cuz Kale is mega smart, that's why. "Forges are hot. Hot. Heat. Passion. Uh … the best place for a date." Clanging, banging, heat, and sweat! What girl wouldn't be swept off her feet if taken there? Blue eyes sweep from Sori, to Idrissa. "She wishes," he retorts, turning a very smug look to the Dragonhealer Class Zero. Or rather … Class one now! "And no, I was wondering why the dragon was painted. I was surprised you weren't crunched." Let's make that clear!
"Long long ago when smiths ruled Pern," retorts Soriana, still grinning. "Which is to say, never." Besides, her and Kale? Old news. Hardly even worth talking about, not that… it ever did get talked about. Details! There are other questions. "What, Evelyth?" she asks. "Nah. L'nus has her under control, and if he didn't, the queens'd hold her. It's just a strained muscle, is all. She'll be fine." Because, if she knows Idrissa, that question was coming up soon. Might as well head it off, before moving on to other things. "I'll have you know I've only been crushed once so far." She smirks. "It's not paint. Numbweed. Can't use it while she's stretching, or she won't get a feel for the muscles, but we put it on after."
Idrissa chuckles softly and shakes her head. "Oh I'm sure smiths ruled somewhere in Pern to some degree." She grins at Soriana and then peers back at Kale. "I dono. I can think of a few other places to go if someone swept me off my feet." She points out. "See, told you nothing like that would happen." For if someone crunched Soriana that would be a /very/ bad thing, she is Sorrin's daughter after all! Rissa eyes Soriana, pondering how her friend knew to answer that. "Well I'm glad she'll be alright."
Who is she calling a numbweed!! …. Oh wait. Not him. Actual numbweed! Kale knew that, and that 'wtf' look on his face dissolves. "Oh," he says, sounding as if he totally already knew that and was just testing her, see! And she passed the test. Gooo Sori! And now, back to teasing. "Just once?" he says in regards to her crunching. His brows raise and push together a little in class, 'poor you' look. "That's all? You're overdue for some crushing again then, aren't you? I bet the other Class Ones have been crushed an' crunched many times and brag of it." He shakes his head in a woebegone way, eyes glancing to Idrissa after. "Like .. Beastcraft Hall?" he guesses, smirk returning.
If Soriana got crushed… Sorrin'd be sad! As presumably would a number of other people, possibly including Kale unless he was being especially bratty that day. Y'never know. "If you did happen to be looking for non-forge options, there's this cake shop in Ierne…" She's just putting it out there. Just in case. Who knows, it might be on a test. Like… numbweed, or being crushed. "Well, so far. One'f the grade twos had his foot broken by a dragon once." Her tone is matter of fact.
Idrissa would be sad thank you! She likes Soriana, there friends, remember? A soft chuckle escapes her and she grins at Kale. "I dono if I'd want any cake from him. Can you just imagen the coal, and ash in the cake he'd make?" She smirks at Kale and shrugs a moment. "I've been stepped on, kicked, shoved. My shoulder hurts when it gets cold cause of a runner that tryed to kick me, hit me but not fully." See, she has been crushed…well to some degree!
Ok he may be a little sad. Or at lot sad. Or incredibly sad. Maybe! But, hm. What's this about a cake shop? Was that a dropped hint? Consider the hint picked up! Now .. just how he interprets that hint is anyone's guess. "Ash doesn't taste so bad, I'll have you know," he retorts to Idrissa, tipping his chin up a bit. There's talk of accidents and such, and he zeroes in on that 'broken foot' story. "See?" he says to Idrissa, brows raising in an 'I told you so' way. "Dragons can hurt people on accident." Which gets him to thinking. "Sori, have you.." But he never gets to finish, for, lo and behold, here comes thirteen or fourteen year old freckle faced girl, hurrying down the beach with a purpose! in her step. "Apprentice Kale, Journeyman Orik is WAITING for you." Emphasis on waiting!
"That," Soriana informs Idrissa, "-is the reason for the cake shop." So other people will do the baking, you see! As for Idrissa's saga of accidents, she just shakes her head. Runners can be vicious! Of course… "Sure, dragons can hurt people. That's like lesson zero. Treat an injured dragon as dangerous. Get the rider or a queen to calm them before you do anything else." See? Also, she sees this new arrival of freckly girl… who, it appears, is dragging Kale away. Sori steps up and attempts to get in a hug on him before he can flee away to work. "Seeya later."
"What? Waiting?" That's never a good word to attach to 'Journeyman'.. "But I thought.." Oh no, he /knows/ he was told he was done after the Xanadu tour! But to give that particular man a gentle reminder of something he obviously forgot is like baiting a beast. Sigh. Freckly face looks a tad impatient, and looks even moreso when noticing he has no boots on… and even MORE so with that hug. What's taking so long? Kale hugs her tightly, for despite all his teasing, he's (kindasortajustalittle) missed her! Hence the excessive teasing. "Yeah. Later like, next sevenday later. Or maybe next month? Or on my next turnday?" he smirks in a, yes you guessed it, tease. He finally lets her go and turns to give Idrissa hug too! And when he's finally ready, freckly has his boots on hand. He inwardly sighs … then, they're off!
Idrissa peers at the voice from the new girl and a soft ah escapes her. "Guess you better get going." She offers with a shake of her head and grins at Kale. "Sok, we're find a way to sneak you out somehow!" Rissa hugs Kale back tightly when she gets said hug, not about to let him go until she has no choice in the matter! As for Soriana. "You all have turned into me when I would work in the stables all the time." Which she sitll does so what is the point to this comment? None of course!
Frecklyface - and Journeyman Orik - can just wait a little longer, because Sori's not going to cut that hug unduly short. Especially not when it's so hard to find time! "Yeah, I'm still on evening rounds for the next sevenday at least." Turns out, when you're the new dragonhealer trainee on the rotation, you get scheduled at all the times the more senior ones don't want. So… evenings and early mornings! At least she's free during the middle of the day, right? Like… when she's got classes over at Ierne, that middle of the day? Yeahhh.