Turnover...Distractions
turnover.bmp

Lost Island - Sugar Beach

Palm trees shade the fine-grained, pristine white sand, making them cool to the touch even when Rukbat is at its peak. Gentle waves from the sheltered bay lap the sand at water's edge. Crystal clear at the shoreline, the waters deepen to aqua then a rich azure in the cove's center. Further out, rolling billows break with a muted roar upon a reef of smooth volcanic rock that protects the cove, keeping the waters of the cove tranquil.

On either side the sand stretches to curve out of sight, flanked on one side by thick jungle, the other by the sea. Someone has tied a woven rope hammock wide enough for two in the shade of the palm trees and just a few steps from a rock fire pit. Nearby there is a path that disappears into the undergrowth.


It's Turnover at Xanadu Weyr and preparations have been rather… mysterious this time. Oh, the kitchens have been a hive of activity, but most of the food prepared has been the cold sort that has been packed in chests and coolers or wrapped and taken elsewhere to cook. Dragons have been loaded and lifted off, heading *Between*, returned for more, but their riders have remained closed-lipped about where and what they’ve been doing today. Breakfast and lunch have been light - sack lunches handed out and folks shooed off to eat in the crisp fall sunshine while being instructed to meet in the clearing an hour from sunset and to dress in summer clothes, bring bathing suits and wear overclothes appropriate for a hop *Between*. That is all. At the time set, most of Xanadu's dragons have taken turns landing, boarding passengers and lifting off to disappear into the deep blue that only fall's clarity can bring.

Popping out of *Between* they come in over a glassy teal sea, brushed with the hues of peaches and pinks, swoop low to skim the waves and land upon the pristine white sands in the tropics. The beach is humming with activity - a large bonfire just lit, strings of colored glows rim the area where logs serve as benches. Off to one side several spits with sides of beef and lamb roast, tables nearby laden with fresh fruit, sweets, dishes of all sorts and of course wines and spirits. Children run up and down the beach or splash in the clear, warm water of the cove while cooks shout and bustle about, riders land further up the beach and drop off their passengers. It's chaos, but of a happy sort.

There's everything tasty imaginable on those festively-bedecked cloth-covered tables adorned with flowers, fruit bouquets and ice sculptures. Crisp-fried coconut bites of spiderclaws and wherry, lemon and herb crusted wherry-on-a-stick, barbecued ribs, fruit ices and mini-cakes… everything is fancy and finger-sized. It seems endless and the cooks are looking downright proud of themselves for having made such pretty food all the while keeping eagle-eyes on those tables and replenishing them as needed from those insulated trunks or hustling to and from the roasting pits. Great slabs of meat are carved fireside for those with plates in hand, the red-faced cooks there calling out like carnival hawkers for people to come and get it. Dragons from other Weyrs - and Ierne of course - arrive as invitations issue forth via dragon contact. The twilight deepens to purple and the first stars appear above. Save for those left to guard the Weyr and on sweeps and children too little to come left in the nursery, everyone is here.

A mystery fit to make curious heads explode! Fortunately, before that quite managed to happen, Soriana got herself onto a dragon. The cool of autumn is replaced by the chill of between, and then the warmth of what is technically still autumn but sure doesn't feel like it. The heat of the tropics! "Oh!" goes Soriana as the blue she's riding emerges into the blue of the sky, and the tight-lipped rider cracks a grin as his dragon comes in for a landing and the passengers hop off. Soriana's shrugging out of her riding jacket almost before her feet touch the sands, and she walks up the shore as a swirl of screaming children part around her. Destination: Food!

Summerclothes? Bathing suits? These mysterious instructions could bring out the curiosity of even the most reserved sort! ka-el is no such type, and thus his own thoughts and wonders of just what is in store have been overflowing since the first whispers of the Turnover celebration. Where will it be? What are they doing? Where's all the food going? Why summer clothes? It's all very distracting, which is a good thing! And so like many others, he followed directions, dressed appropriately, and boarded a dragon. And now … he here appears! The green he rides lands gracefully as ever, and he and others disembark for what looks to be a feast fit for a king! Dressed in swimming trunks and short sleeved tee, he hauls on over towards the food and drink, eyes lingering on those spirits a little longer than necessary. Hey … it is a special day, so.. "Hey, Sori!" he calls to the back of someone who may or may not be Soriana, but at least looks like her from behind.

While the tight lipped riders were taking passengers to the mysterious destination, it was with enough convincing that the cat was let out of the preverbal bag so that one outsider could follow behind on his own lifemate. It was hard to convince a rider to take another dragon when he had one of his own. The midnight toned bronze slips down toward the concourse set aside for landings to allow the exotic stranger from Ierne to reappear this night. While he was a few times sequestered in Xanadu, once when the ruins collapsed all around him and twice when his lifemate had eggs on the sand with an Ierne queen, the man has never really hung around for longer durations. There was no need, not when life in Ierne provided him with opportunities a Weyr could not. Regardless, A'dmar has put on his best tonight in the way of formal attire, nice crisp black shirt with a purple undertone over which a handsome and snug stone colored blazer hangs over, topped off with a powder blue scarf. He's considering the food, the roast lamb for one, approving the spread as he starts searching for a plate. Might as well -eat- while he's here.

Wending her way through the crowd is the Weyrwoman, having checked in with the headwoman, seen to this or that and now headed towards the tables to see if all is well. That's when she gets a plate shoved into her hands and sternly told to eat. This is where all four converge and it's Thea who greets them with a sweep of sea green eyes that are a touch harried and distracted but warm none-the-less. "Soriana, I hope your mother is here." Not to keep an eye on her - honest! The junior just needs to relax. Kale gets a nod and A'dmar a blink and then a startled - and suspicious look at the gold hides present. Whew! They look normal!

The backs of heads can be tricky things to identify. They're usually so… nonspecifically hairy. Or shiny and bald, as the case may be, though this one isn't. This one, in fact, does belong to Soriana, as is made evident when she turns sideways to smile to Thea. "She said she'd come," Sori answers the weyrwoman, though her tone sounds anything but certain, especially as she adds, "I haven't seen her yet." There's that slight frown of wondering just how many one more things might be keeping Sorrin. It only lasts a moment, for she's soon distracted by a shout. She turns around to search for the source of that call… aha! There he is. She grins, and waves to Kale. "Heya! Didja just get here? It's pretty awesome, huh?" she says. Overhead, her gold firelizard appears and trills happy approval for Warm! Why has there not been as much warm lately? Someone should fix that. Get to it! Sori just laughs, glancing up at Haruhi and then back to the others near her, giving a polite nod to A'dmar along the way.

Everyone is here. Everyone Kale has ever met in passing, or delivered a message to, or passed along a dirt road is here! There's Tomis, a friendly weyrbrat, stuffing his already pudgy face with a plate full of minicakes. Likely enough to make a regular cake if they were all morphed together. A couple of other teens he knows, goofing off, trying to catch the attention of same-aged teen girls by being…well, childish. He catches a glimpse of a particular freckly faced smithcraft apprentice that he somewhat ducks behind someone upon seeing. And even the weyrwoman's here! Of course she's here. She's THE Weyrwoman, so why wouldn't she be? He only received a nod from her, but a nod is all that's needed to get him grinning brilliantly at her before dipping his head in return. "Good after- .. evenin'," he greets. Afterevening. It's the new time of day! "This is grand, it really is," he compliments just before his eyes traverse to Soriana and then A'dmar, head slightly tilting at his former attire. "You're not warm? It's very nice, either way though," he says kindly. Then, to Soriana he nods. "Yup, just arrived on a green. Aaand my tongue's ready to taste about everything here!" he laughs.

A'dmar pauses at that startled and suspicious look, lifting an eyebrow at Thea all the same, "Nice to see you again Weyrwoman," politely addressed despite the suspicion behind her look of greeting. He is content with waiting to get a plate and when offered the chance goes for a hot steaming slice of roast-lamb, cooked over an open fire. Delicious. Thanking the cook with a bob of his head, he saunters to the rest of the fixings, going to take a bit of everything. It's a rare thing that he gets to stop and eat a meal this good. As for the others, Soriana does get a return nod as does Kale, shaking his head with the question of the attire, "I'm quite comfortable." It might be something to do with his sienna skin and his exotic desert-born looks, either way, his eyes attune back to where Thea is, subsequently moving to be in a better conversational range once his food is all sorted out on his plate, "Do you have time to join me for dinner?" Hah. Why stand to eat when one can sit.

Thea's eyes follow Soriana's as if the girl might know better than she would where to look for Sorrin. Alas, no can find. Her eyes seek Seryth then and it's a given that the senior gold will be getting in touch with Yumeth. No one works tonight! "Tell her there's klah," Thea mutters under her breath in a distracted aloud meant only for the queen. Next her eyes wander to the beach to rest upon a dark-haired pair swimming with the others 10-11 turn olds, assuring herself that they're behaving, eyes following an older blue lifting off for more passengers, the ones just dropped off staggering in almost-dazed relief to be on the ground. She tries to stifle a grin but fails, Kale's 'afterevening' and wide smile working against sobriety. Her eyes are dancing in merriment as she lifts them back to the returned A'dmar. She's just distracted in a million directions tonight, don't mind her. Join…him? Blink. "Ahh, sure?" She waves at the logs by the fire where there are several spaces free. "Let me get something on this plate and I'll be right there." Taking a little of this and that, stepping over to the lamb herself for a rare cut and snagging a glass of white wine, she makes her way over to sink gracefully beside him. "All is well in Ierne?" One never knows. Darsce's been popping back and forth…

A'dmar moves to the logs by the fire while Thea situates herself with food on her plate, getting himself comfortable and starting in on the meal he scooped up. Turnover's are a blast, free food, free drinks, ahh the pleasures of a Weyr. The man is quickly engrossed in his meal, the lamb very succulent and rich with flavor. Once Thea has managed to make it over to him, he puts aside his fork in favor of speaking with her, one of the reasons beyond the food in why he came. "Ierne is what it is. I'm not sure what's going on with the election process, it seems to have stalled in the political confines as it were," he shrugs his shoulders, having once been rumored to have campaigned for Weyrlord there. He does sip on some wine himself, a glass that floated by his attention and plucked off a tray when Thea was at the tables. "The warehouse has been rebuilt and business is flowing again… Which is why I came to take some of your time," his dark eyes flicker toward her, handling the matters as bluntly and as politely as he can, so not to waste her time, "I have found the rock you need."

Comfortable eh? Kale will totally pass on wearing such formal attire to a beach party, but to each his own! He grins to the fellow and nods to him. "I know someone who'd appreciate your sense've style, sir," he comments with an amused look, though he'd be hard-pressed to find that person in such a crowd of Xanadu-folk! Blue eyes flit from man to Weyrwoman as he asks her to join him. What's this? He's stealing her away! Curse you, mister sir! Though all is well, for there is always a silver lining. Thea is off to get her food, which leaves Kale to watch her walk off and get her food. Cue a slight bout of smooth staring. …… And his senses return! A blink refocuses his mind, and he grins, looking to Soriana (because he really wasn't just staring at the retreating form of their Senior Weyrwoman. At all…nope) "Super secrect plans, maybe?" he guesses before gesturing to the food and picking up two plates to balance on a bent arm. "What'you want? Dinner's on me!" Har har.

Of course Darsce's been popping back and forth. Parties are her specialty and those bright, colorful tablecloths and napkins scream Ierne's finest in party linens. If the decorations are ritzy, you can bet she has a hand in organizing that. She's been to the Sweet Shop, the caterers and… "Hi Quion," she says with a saucy and irreverent wink as she swings by snagging a bit of something from his plate. Yep, the Trading Post too, with myriads of packages, probably driving A’dmar nuts with 'these have to be in Xanadu yesterday. Shake your tail and scram already.' She doesn't stop to get a reprimand from Thea - she has melting ice sculptures and wilting flowers to replace! Off she goes, dancing out of reach and disappearing into the crowd.

Idrissa was given the ok to leave the infirmary it would seem, and the all clear to go between or she wouldn't be here. Though while others are off splashing in the water she isn't to eager to go for a swim, which is not like her in the least. She slowly moves along the sand, kicking up some now and then while she scratches and rubs at a thin bandage that is around her right forearm. It takes her some time before she finds a place to sit, upon the sand and the waves come up just enough to hit her feet. After everything Rissa has dealt with for the past few weeks she hasn't been that eager to join up in things, an even at the party she isn't eager to get involved. She only came because the healers thought it would be good if she got out an away from Xanadu for a bit.

Ers'lan has been in the crowd but he's picked someone out of the crowd and followed her, stalking behind until she's down and sitting. It's Idrissa that the brownrider is after, concerned with her well being even after she was rescued. "Rissa," he intones some warmth into using her nickname, plunking himself down in the sand next to her, "How ye doin thar me'girl?" There was and has been some guilt festering for how long it took the wing to find the girls, even so, he does bump his shoulder into the unusually quiet Idrissa.

Soriana can't help but grin at Thea's idea of how to get her mother here, then turns her attention back to Kale, linking her arm with his. "Oh it is, is it?" she asks him, and laughs as she starts off with him toward all those things that smell oh-so-delicious! She must taste them all! They… waaaaait. What's that there? It's Idrissa, sitting on the shore and being… sad. This will not do. Sad has no place at the Turnday Celebrations. She casts a wistful glance at the food, then tugs Kale off in a different direction. They must cheer up the Idrissa before they can eat… though Ers'lan gets there first.

Thea saw that Kale! She has eyes in the back of her head don’tcha know (not really!) It's really better that she remain oblivious to that, yes. At least she's in nothing so form-hugging that she'll be too awfully distracting. He emerald green sleeveless sundress is loose-fitting to swish about her calves, her thick dark hair is done up in a casual twist that is already falling prey to the heat with wisps falling down the back of her neck. She's barefoot casual, just the way she likes it. "Stone?" she says it stupidly while watching Darsce head off, dark brows knit. She really ought to do something about that young woman! Returning to A'dmar, Thea's eyes are vaguely distracted and her dinner sits uneaten. The woman REALLY needs a vacation. She blinks then and remembers. "Right, stone! The fine grained stuff for the ruins repairs. Where?"

A little of this, and a little of that! Kale gets a tiny cake put on a plate, and then a tiny something or another on a stick. And he's just about to gesture for a slice of roast meat (because who cares if you get dessert and entrees on the same plate?) when he feels a tug on his arm. Wait…what? No no, they should be going to the food! And especially toward that drink which he has every excuse to taste tonight because it is a celebration of another Turn! "Where are you going? There's food…over there…" And spirits and wine and other such adultish things!

A'dmar lifts a brow at Kale's remark about style, though he doesn't follow the teen in finding out who would appreciate it, not sure if it was a slight against his person. Better to ignore those types of things, in favor of conversation with the Weyrwoman. It's Darsce, who lifts his gaze from his plate with her saucy greeting, his brow lifting in complete defiance of her nature, calm and assertive greeting back, "Miss Darsce. I see all your packages arrived on time." No doubt he's dealt with worse than shake your tail and scram, putting on quite a business-like tone for her even thoughs he does pluck a bit of food from his plate. "Is this all your doing?" he does indicate the decorations, hopefully before she's off to dance in between the crowds, an impressive tilt of his brows for the ice sculptures and flowers set about. A'dmar turns his eyes back to Thea, noticing the food has gone untouched, "You seem a little distracted. I apologize for putting business into a time of celebration, but it's likely the best opportunity I have currently." He lifts his glass of wine and sips at it, answering the last with a slight smirk, "Igen of course, were I told you it would be. There are bluffs northwest in the desert, with numerous cave systems that work underneath the sand. It'll be risky for workers, because of the sand snakes - bigger than your common tunnelsnakes, cave lurks, and shadow starks." Yes, Pernese have more things to worry about than tunnelsnakes. "Beyond that, the desert heat of the day and the cold by night," such small worries, "Best stone you'll find to make those repairs. The engineers agree."

Idrissa lifts her head slightly as she catches her name, and the one calling it makes her blinks. "Hello Ers'lan." She doesn't blame the wing for how long it took, the two was lost rather good, bad?.. Or well something along those lines. "I'm alright, just tired. How is Lorelai?" She hasn't had the chance to talk to the other since everything really, and up until a few hours ago she was playing keep the healers company in the infirmary as they worried over her healing wounds. As for being quiet, many knew in the past this is how Rissa was, sure she had opened up a lot over the past turns but at the moment she is her old self. "An how are you?" She continues to pick and pull at the bandage on her arm a few more times before she gets herself to stop. As for Kale and Soriana she hasn't noticed her friends yet.

After all the difficulties with the sands, Jethaniel disappeared from Xanadu for a while. Some reports need to be delivered personally. He came back, though. Apparently, even after all that, the weyr's leadership decided to permit his presence. Remarkable. Truly remarkable - though some might speculate his presence here today is a fact even more remarkable. He's at a social event. He has in his hand a small plate of assorted food. He's wearing a short-sleeved blue shirt, a pleated black kilt, and knee-length blue socks with a cabled design. He's mingling, or at least standing around in the crowd with a bemused smile and occasionally making eye contact with people.

Ers'lan tries to note the way Idrissa carries herself and what her body language expresses, nodding at her answer of how she fairs, "Lorelai be shaken up, as ta be expected. She's be at home, spending time with little Lanai 'n Laera be attentive to her comforts too." Always helps to have a healer for a weyrmate. "I reckon ye two should be talkin soon. Helps ta work it out in yer minds whar all happened." He regards the bandages on her arms and frowns at them, simply because Idrissa has them and that the wing couldn't find them before it happened. "Dun worry Rissa, we be catchin 'em felines right soon. I dun narh want tha ta be happenin again," that's his vow, his promise. For his own well being, "I be relieved 'n angry. Angry fer it happenin ta ya… relieved tha ye both are home." Not safe and sound, but at least home. "I reckon yer friends be bout. Ye should come try some of the food, more than jus' fish ta pick from." At least he's trying to convince her to join the festivities.

It's a bright happy day. Whyfor does Idrissa have to have a sad? Now Soriana's got something of a sad as well! She leaves Kale (and the food! the tasty, tasty food and also the drinks!) behind, and steps up and sits herself down on the opposite side from Ers'lan, nodding to the wingleader briefly before her eyes linger on Rissa's face instead. "Hey," she says, and then goes quiet to listen to her and Lan's conversation.

Darsce sashays right on by Ers'lan without delaying him. Why, she doesn't even heckle him about wearing HER wingleader's knot, imagine that! She does pinch his rear end though. Can't let him off too lightly, can she? And off to those tables to see to her business. The decorations are tweaked, melted things replaced with new sculptures unwrapped from their protective cases and installed, linens swept, fresh flowers added… hum-dee-dummm. The girl is in her element, flawlessly dressed in a strapless periwinkle top, pink lei the only thing clothing her neck and hiding the curve of her bosom. Her white shorts are, well, short. Very. Slim are feet encased in gilt and rhinestone sandals. Kale was probably talking about Darsce when he said someone would appreciate A'dmar's clothing. And appreciate it she does with a "Nice threads, Quion," as she wanders by again, this time with a drink gracefully held in long fingers. She says nothing about the packages. She paid him, he did as she expected he would. She's cool when she says thanks for his compliment to the decorations, besides they're talking… ugh! Rocks. And not the sparkly kind. "Ta," she says with a flutter of fingers and makes a v'tol line for Jethaniel, whom she's juuuust now spotted. That kilt is wowza - she has to know the weave, right? And thus it's a two-fingered pluck at the hem as she lifts it to get a peek at his legs instead with a whistle, "Nice, Jeth." Yep, her father ought to be along right about now.

Now, Kale has no girl on his arm. This is a sad thing! All he has left is a plate of a minicake and a delicious smelling something on a stick. But now that he's left to watch where Soriana's off to, now he understands why food has been dismissed so drastically! His eyes drift to the left and he catches a random partygoer by the arm, handing over his plate. "Have at it. Let me know how it is, at least?" Good man. He pats him on the back, then ste- Woah, wait is that Darsce over there? Cue some innards suddenly turning into jelly, and his grow just slightly larger, and .. No. Focus! He literally gives his head a brisk little shake, eyes squinting closed and opening again in the direction of Idrissa, Ers'lan, and Soriana. He heads towards them now, pausing on the same side as Sori, but remaining standing. "Glad y'made it out, Idrissa," he says with a grin to her. His eyes turn to Ers'lan, and the wingleader is greeted as well, a look of respect in his eyes. He did, afterall, lead the team to find Idrissa. "An' you too. Good evening to you."

A standard loom using a mid-weight thread is responsible for Jethaniel's kilt, constructed with a sufficiently heavy fabric to prevent mild breezes from causing it to lift. It is not, however, sufficiently heavy to prevent Darsce's fingers from lifting it. The pleats are sewn in place; this design keeps them evenly positioned, maintaining an appropriate distance from his legs for air circulation to occur and resulting in a garment that resumes its proper shape after reconfiguration due to either weather-related causes or, as in the present case, manual manipulation. Interestingly enough, the display of his legs due to Darsce-related causes is only indirectly what catches his attention; a small breeze takes advantage of this unpredicated access. His gaze alights on the contributing factor to this moment of windchill. "Ah, hello Darsce." He smiles.

Seibith is in his element is sprial-landing and swooping down to the beach with dizzy, shell-shocked passengers and thus D'had is too busy shuttling folks to glare at bronzeriders talking to Thea or Darsce fingering those off-limits men. Thea's checking on him – warily so – as well as her offspring, the fires, the tables – especially the drinks table to make sure drunks aren't needing to be quelled. Kale, Soriana and Idrissa are chatting with one of her wingleaders, the kids are swimming, the harpers playing… All is as it should be! Back to A’dmar, "Igen. Right! You said the stone would be there. I'll have to go see it, but of course we'll trust the masters on the final decision. When do we-" Cue record skid sound here. "Shadow… starks? Cave lurkers? What pray tell, are those?" Her food is forgotten completely.

Idrissa isn't per say sad, she's just being that quiet Rissa, not very eager to join in things, over thinking things perhaps which is really normal for her. "I'm glad she's alright, an home with Lanai." There is a slight pause as if she wanted to say more but catches herself. "Course, whenever she might want. I'm still not allowed to work at the stables for a while more." Which is a nagging sort of thing to her, it is where she wants to be after all and not being able to actual work leaves her mind to wandering more than normal. A slight glance is sent to Ers'lan at the talk on her felines. "They was just doing what came naturally to them. I don't really blame them either." This most likely shouldn't be a surprise seeing how this is Rissa talking about some animal, even if it was a feline that attacked her. "Not that I want anyone to get hurt again." She shakes her head at the bit on Lan being angry. "You shouldn't be angry, we're ok after all." Could have been way worse but she doesn't comment on that. "I'm sure there around I just don't know how long I'll stay, don't want to keep them from having fun because I'm not feeling up to it." Her gaze turns to follow after Darsce and she tilts her head just peering after the girl before Soriana's form and voice gets her attention. A faint smile is seen, which is also sent to Kale once he is over. "Hey, ya suppose I had to at some point."

A'dmar can't help but notice Darsce strutting right on by after the compliment to his attire, approving of her own strapless assemble. Although all he does this time is flash her a quaint and favorable smile, style behind even that as he takes a moment to adjust and tuck his blazer. He doesn't seem offended when she trots off for better hunting grounds in the form of a kilt wearing Jethaniel, considering A'dmar has Thea's current company and would not dare to leave the conversation between them waiting. Rocks, not that interesting, but a mark is a mark in A'dmar's world and this project will leave him with plenty of those in his pocket. He takes the opportunity to eat and drink when she's busy inspecting the scene, failing to notice the D'had glare or anything else untoward and focused on him. The last almost startled response from Thea has the man considering her for a longer duration, "Things to be killed upon being spotted. They don't bother humans unless we go into their territory, which in this case, we would be. In short, desert dwelling creatures that are vicious and can be deadly. Hard to explain to one who hasn't seen them, but I assure you, you wouldn't want to see them without a spear in hand. Details we can discuss at another time." Not to ruin her party. "I don't mean to keep you from the party, I just didn't want you to think I had forgotten about the project." Long time in coming, this.

Ers'lan had turned his head around at the pinch to his rear, seeing Darsce sashay on right on to her business of decoration tending. If Idrissa hadn't been in his sights, he might have repaid the favor of the pinch, and with his subsequent gaze following her, he'll remember to do so in the future, as long as the Weyrsecond isn't around. Ahh but Idrissa's state of mind and body have a little more weight to it than chasing after a bigger tease than him! Still, he can't help but be thankful when Idrissa's friends do start to cluster as it were, his eyes lifting to Soriana and then Kale, both receiving a nod, "Aye, 'n here they be." As if on cue! He does get in a pat to Idrissa's knee, "I be glad yer okay, truly. T'would narh sleep if either of ye be not safe now. I reckon yer duties can be waitin until ye heal all right and sound." He starts to pull himself up from the sand and offers a hand to Idrissa, "Thar be a good time ta be had here though. Food, drink, friends, warm fire." Everything to invite a happy evening. Somewhere in between standing up and offering a hand to get Idrissa to stand, his eyes catch sight to the man-skirt and Darsce, mostly Darsce, but he is not without his own gawking to the man-skirt. Only with a shake of his head does he glance back to the trio.

Soriana rolls her eyes as Idrissa explains how she doesn't blame the felines, but it's with a bit of a grin. She gives Ers'lan a vague half-salute as he stands up, complete with a grateful smile, and as he offers Idrissa that hand, she leans in and nudges at one of the non-bandaged bits of the other girl's side. "Y'know," she says in confidential tones, "-with those bandages, I bet we can cut to the front of all the lines. Y'think you can do a limp to go with it? Kale and I will carry the plates." She grins, and adds, "Think about it!" as she gets up to her feet.

An invitation to a party is something brownrider R’oux of Western Weyr found herself unable to resist, when word came filtering through to her from Indianath. She passed it forth to the members of her wing who she'd just finished drilling with, and, an hour or so later with everyone scrubbed up and looking dapper, the tight formation of Archipelago wingriders hopped between. Appearing now above the designated party spot, the Wingleader directs their landing, slipping down from Indianath's back and leading the way across the beach towards the gathering. The wing contingent splits off to do it's own thing, while Rou'x - clad in dark leathers that somewhat slim down her over-heavy hips, and a crisply-pressed white, light tunic with her waist-long braid hanging heavy down her back - is drawn to the spits, plate in hand and a lopsided grin of greeting for those she passes.

Friends appearing on cue. It's what they do! Kale is quiet, eyes drifting from Soriana, to Idrissa, to Ers'lan as each one speaks. Much like Sori, he scoffs as the poor felines that attacked her are let off the hook. Of course it wasn't their fault that they ripped their teeth and claws into her! He's not silly enough to argue against that though, and only smirks now as things get rolling. Yes, first stand up. Then .. food! And fun and dan-…ok, well, maybe not dancing, at least with Idrissa, but there are plenty of other things to do! "And by 'Kale and I will carry the plates', she really means just Kale," he extends with a raised brow and good-natured smirk just as his eyes flit above at the arrival of more dragons. More party goers!

How… scientific. It's too bad Jethaniel didn't say all that out loud - Darsce would love to talk socks with him! "The manskirt's not half bad either," she drawls in response to his hello. "So. You came up for air, hmm?" Speaking of air, he's SMILED at her. Breathless is she! "You want something to drink?" Oh right. Must let go of the skirt (er kilt!) to get him one. She has something else to ask him, but that will wait a bit.

Thea snorts, "Spear nothing! I'll bring my crossbow. And don't say anything about 'dangerous' where my Weyrsecond can hear you. He won't let me go." Food now, she can eat with relish, the thought of this little adventure has her whetted her appetite. Out on the point, where reefs rise above the surf, Seryth bugles a welcome to Western's Archipelago wing as it arrives. The Weyrwoman shifts, about to go welcome them, but the Headwoman has got it, directing them to the tables. "Happy Turnover," Thea says with a welcoming smile as Rou'x and the others pass. Sea green eyes wander as she takes a bite of the succulent roast lamb, she spots the kilt-lifting Darsce, she splutters, eyes lifting skyward half-expecting a vengeful bluerider to pounce growling on poor harmless Jethaniel.

For the moment, at least, Jethaniel's skill at socks will remain a mystery. He smiles (again) at the compliment to his kilt, for it is, after all, the manliest of skirts. It ranks highly on both manliness and skirthood. "Thank you," he says. "It is, apparently, one of the recent fashions at Landing." He has a slightly bemused look as he reports that, then adds, "I find it rather comfortable." He glances down, regarding those fingers holding that kilt up. Hmm. He neither makes a comment, nor is struck down by a sudden assault of bluerider. His gaze lifts up again. "A drink? Yes, that does seem suitable." He pauses a moment, considering. "In fact, the current circumstances might even be conducive to a fruity one." Having drawn that conclusion, he holds out his plate to Darsce. "Would you like a … fried thing?" Theoretically, the social context will excuse his lack of domain-specific knowledge and technical expertise on the subject.

Idrissa isn't about to comment on anything she saw with Darsce, adults are strange, really. Perhaps at some point Rissa will blame the felines, but it isn't today it seems. "Ya, they have a way of appearing like that. I think they follow me sometimes." Her tone is amused; at least she is attempting to get out of her funk. A slight smile is soon seen as she hears Ers'lan and takes hold of his hand and slowly stands up, almost carefully. "Thank you Ers'lan, for everything. I'm thankful that you and the others found us. I suppose my work can wait, not like it will go wandering off without me." There is a slight pause and she bites her lip a moment before leaning close to give Ers'lan a slight hug, /friendly/ only, thankful is a word that could be used, and it doesn't last long as she doesn't want it to be all strange. Hearing Soriana a soft chuckle escapes her. "Cut in lines huh? I suppose I could help out for that. Aw, how nice, he offered to carry everything Sori." This said once Kale goes about commenting on just him doing so.
pages: How do I get there?

"Those take too long to reload…" A'dmar notes about her mention of a crossbow, a firm believer in the good old fashioned spear, agile and quickly used. There's a curious eye moved toward the Weyrsecond when he's mentioned, nodding at the advice, "I'll keep that in mind Weyrwoman." No, he doesn't need a jealous weyrmate beating down his door when something goes wrong, he heard about what Xe'ter all those many moons ago when the ruins trapped the Weyrwoman and the Weyrleader together. He's moving back to the meal at hand, muttering as he watches Darsce play with the manskirt and Thea's spluttering, "Is she your daughter?"

Ers'lan helps to carefully manage Idrissa to her feet, smiling at her gratifulness of the rescue, "Thank ye Rissa, fer chasing after me weyrmate that day. I reckon could 'ave been worse with out ya helpin with her runner…" Lorelai lost to the man would be tragic. He lets his hand slide out of hers, peering at Soriana and Kale, "She be all yers now," winking to Idrissa as no doubt her friends will ensure she'll have a great night. Oh! He gets hugged! He'll never turn down a hug! Never ever. So that hug is returned, full heartedly but mindful of those bandages! Once that's over and not too strange at all, he bobs his head and mutters about going to find one of his weyrmates, "Happy Turnover ye three. Dun get inta too much trouble. Cuttin lines be dangerous." This is when the wingleader makes his break from the teens, strutting through the crowd, looking for a pint!

Follow Idrissa? Maaaaaybe. After all, what if she gets lost again? "Only sometimes," is what Soriana says, and then she grins to Kale as he protests. "Well, I mean, unless you don't think you can handle them!" She smirks, then adds, "It's okay to admit weakness, you know…" before looking back to Idrissa. See? She agrees, and when both girls agree on something… yeah, Kale's doomed. DOOMED. To… carry plates, and be teased. So terrible a fate. She nods to Ers'lan. "Happy Turnover to you! We'll be careful." Note she didn't say they weren't going to cut. Or whether they're being careful to avoid trouble or careful to avoid getting caught. Some things, adults do not need to know.

"Happy turnover, Weyrwoman," Rou'x replies to Thea, giving her a playful salute and pausing by the woman's table before heading back to join her wingmates at theirs. The conversation happening there is interesting, and she snorts a laugh at A'dmar's comment about crossbows before interrupting with a reply to him. "Aye, but a crossbow's a far better option'n a bow or summat, y'know? Girls've got bits that get in the way of twangin' strings, n' that /ain't/ no fun, let me tell ya." A piece of roast wherry is picked up from her plate and popped into her mouth, chewed on while she waits for the Iernian's response.

Darsce flutters her lashes. "Are they? I'll have to visit Landing more often." She'll have to visit period. History bores her, but if the men are running around in skirts, well! She'll manage. She still has the hem of his kilt in her perfectly-manicured fingers. He's not protesting? Well then! She's in the process of lifting it higher, "What else have you got under here-" when he asks the question. Her glossed lips part and he gets a stare of admiration. Nowait. He's far too nerdy to mean- She just winks and drawls, "Later Babe. I'll get you that drink first." And off she goes, hips swaying to get him something so fruity he won't taste the extra rum she puts in it.

Kale gingerly stays on stand by while Idrissa is stood up, prepared to help with any stumbling. But there is none, and he relaxes. "No," he replies as he shakes his head at Idrissa. "I correctly assumed I'd be used for grunt work, as all the two of you ever want from me. Carry this. Haul that. Put this thing there. Drag this over here." An exaggerated sigh accompanies his exaggerated words. "I don't know why I put up with it all." He raises an arm to flex a muscle. "I'm pretty sure I can handle a plate or two or three. Four would have been out of the question." A smirk follows, and to Ers'lan he calls, "Happy Turnover!" in his wake. And then.. to the food!

"Not when I'm firing them they don't!" Thea will remain unconvinced and will be bringing it with her and happy to prove to A'dmar how mistaken he is about that. "Besides, you can't reload a spear. Once you throw it, you're left empty-handed." She lifts a piece of golden coconut-crusted spiderclaw to her mouth, eyes tracking Darsce's progress towards the booze. At least she's let go of poor Jethaniel's kilt. "No," she says shortly to A'dmar with a sort of 'are you kidding me?!' tone. Not only is Darsce silvery-blonde and blue eyed while Thea is dark-haired and green eyed, the younger woman would have had to be birthed when Thea was nine. "Do I look that old?" Watch it A'dmar! That's a loaded question. She notes Rou'x's salute and nods, schooling her face into something more pleasant. No need to scare the guests away.

Socks. Socks are what Jethaniel has under his kilt. No further details are exposed at this time, for Darsce releases the hem and the garment slowly sinks to its proper position. Or, at least, the position of maximal propriety. Opinions on what's actually proper for a manskirt may vary. "Ah," he says, and lowers his plate slightly. "Thank you," he says, and his gaze follows Darsce as she departs. Without looking away from those swaying hips, his fingers reach for his plate. He selects something, and places it into his mouth. Mmm, fried sausage.

A'dmar is polishing off his plate when Rou'x seems to manage to sneak in to catch the conversation about crossbows verus spears. He dabs his mouth with a napkin that he had tucked underneath his plate, before he answers. Prim and proper, this gent knows how to be classy, but he sticks out like a sore thumb in a beach party. "Crossbows don't work as well in confined quarters. Short spears or dirks work for tight spaces. You'd have an awful time trying to pull crank back the draw on a crossbow when you barely have room to move." He was comfortable with the debate, "Crossbows and bows are designed for long range besides, not the type of scenario I was discussing." Thea earns a nod, "Most people assume you would fight with a spear by throwing it, however, there are other ways to use them." The plate is set aside as he stands, wine glass in hand, extending his now cleaned off hand to the woman from Western, "I'm A'dmar. You are?" At least, there is that until Thea responds about Darsce. He takes a second look at Darsce and back to Thea, how can he recover?!! "I'd say you aged very well if you were." That question is a fail, no matter how one answers!

Idrissa isn't about to not take a offered hug back, hugs all around! Well no not really. "I'd do it agian too." This is said to her chasing after Lorelai, or anyone else for that matter. "If she ever wants to take a ride again, I'll make sure we are well away from any crazyness." An there is no storms, and away from the swaps, and so many other things to avoid. She'll need a check list! "We're be good." Unless someone brings up crazy ideas, which she will promptly flee from, she has had enough excitment for a while thank you. "Happy Turnover to you as well Ers'lan." It is strange how some friendships start out, how many turns ago did Rissa meet Ers'lan? An it took her nearly forever to actually talk to him without being that fearful mouse she use to be. Now she does consider him a friend, perhaps even more so after the whole lost in the forest deal. With the wingleader off she peers at Soriana and Kale, a slight grin seen. "You know that you like it Kale. Why else would you hang around? So… What's this about getting food?" Onwards Kalemule, plates for you to carry it seems.

"C'mon, then," says Soriana with a grin. "Should we start at the cakey end or the meaty end?" she asks Idrissa - because she's going to make the other girl Decide Something. Besides, if she asked Kale, he'd decide to start at the drinks end, and then he'd see Darsce over there and never ever return.

Ers'lan smirks at Idrissa, "Reckon be the next time in a corral…" he doesn't need to be chasing off after them again, not that it's likely to happen. "Be passin it on ta her fer ya," the offer of riding again, that is. He gives the teens a final wave before going for the drink table. And guess who he walks up behind? Darsce, that's right. He returns the pinch to her rump from earlier. See. He's learning. It's all about patience and pouncing on the opportunities. To the ales, he calls out for a white ale, nodding to the makeshift bartenders as he eyes up Darsce and mutters, "Whar be with yer friend's skirt thar? Tell 'em it be lookin sexy fer me, aye?" Playful wink.

"Rou'x, brown Indianath's n' Wingleader over that rowdy lot." The brownrider tilts her head towards the Archipelago wingriders who accompanied her, and is halfway to offering her hand to A'dmar when she realises it's still greasy from the wherry she just ate. Putting up one hand to call for a second to clean off, she settles down her plate, grabs a handy napkin, and gives her paws a quick rub-down before presenting a hand for the bronzerider to grasp. "Well met, A'dmar. Din'tchoo end up in our infirmary f' some time? Wi'… Zahl?" There are vague memories there, and she's trying to piece them together as she looks from Thea to A'dmar, as if just realising she's hijacking a conversation - not that it seems to /bother/ her. "D'you mind me bargin' in? Don't wanna be interruptin', nor nothin'."

Pft. Kale would totally start at the cakey end, thank you very much. Then meander his way towards the drinks end. THEN disappear off the face of Pern to join Darsceland. Just so we're all clear! But the order in which he is to slave himself as their obedient food servant isn't up to him, apparently. He moves to grab three plates. Then, on second thought, puts one away and suffices with two. The chance of an accident happening has lessened tremendously with that one decision. "Well?" he says, bowing lavishly after, "how can I serve you? We've a delectable spread here, as you can see. Xanadu's finest from meats to sweets." Look, he can rhyme! "And an worthy assortment of wine and ale and spirits." Just..throwing that out there.

"Not at all," Thea assures Rou'x with a smile and a graceful 'be my guest' gesture. She remains unconvinced about crossbows, "Nonsense. Besides, I can throw a dagger fairly accurately as a follow-up." They're not going to agree there, though she chuckles about Rou'x's comment about bows. The woman gets a nod and another grin. Touche! She ought to make A'dmar squirm regarding Darsce but she doesn't. "She's D'had and Asher's daughter," she explains easily. "She's a handful." Which is putting it mildly.

A'dmar is grateful not to get a handful of grease! He politely waits for Rou'x to clean off her fingers before going back in attempts to shake hands. "Wingleader Rou'x, pleasure to meet you," quaint and professional, taking back his hand and drawing up his wine during the interlude. It seems to surprise him that the woman would remember him being in Western, as he has kept a low profile there since his experience in the infirmary, "Yes. The one and the same. Your infirmary was quite remarkable. I owe my life to the healers there." A moment, "And Zahleizjah is my daughter, long lost and recently reacquainted." There is a hint of happiness in his tone when he speaks of Zahl, but nothing that would stray away too long from his level tone of controlled business-like tone. He reseats himself on the log that has been made into their makeshift dining table, listening to Thea as she explains about Darsce, nodding there, "Apparently. She was a little insistent to get her packages delivered on time." To put it nicely. He does extend Thea's offer to Rou'x with a brief gesture of his hand.

Somewhere along the line, Hil manages to find his way across the beach without great catastrophe in his wake. He's not a destructive person, there just… seems to be things he manages to trip over that isn't normally possible. The elder rider pauses for a moment, glancing through the crowd of people for familiar faces. Namely: his children. With a heavy sigh, the Eastern bronzerider accepts they're likely off with friends and /carefully/ mingles with the masses and give his greetings. Only… he hasn't the foggiest idea what the Senior looks like. D'oh. He pauses, frowning visibly as he glances from shoulder to shoulder to shoulder, not finding a goldrider in sight.

Idrissa would be totally fine with it being in a corral, as she doesn't want anyone to have to find her like that ever again thank you! Wait she gets the pick where the three are going? Sure that always works out well. "Well, meat stuffs, then sweet stuffs, then drink stuffs?" That makes total sense right? She is follows after Soriana and Kale, peering at what he is doing which makes her chuckle softly. "Your rather good at this. Ever though of doing this instead of being a smither?"

Winking at Thea for her welcome, Rou'x drags out a seat and plonks her hefty backside down onto it. "I stood wi' Zahl, when Indy found me. She's alright." Alright meaning, as indicated by the rider's heavily accented tone, a decent sort - rather than something mediocre. "I reckon," and now, she's addressing both Weyrwoman and bronzerider, as she snatches up a fork to snag a piece of her roast wherry on, "that it's worth knowin' how t' use all them weapons at some point. Y'never know what's gonna be most appropriate n' when, so it's best bein' prepared, right? I'd like bows if I could use 'em, but summat like a good knife's always handy t'have on ya, ain't it?"

Oh, is that how it's going to be? Soriana grins at Kale's hopeful expression about getting some of those fine selection. "Meats, then sweets it is!" she says, then adds after a speculative glance at the crowds, "Actually, how about I go get us some drinks while you two get some food?" After all, Kale would probably run out of hands. Where by probably we mean certainly - after all, he only has two, and there are three people needing drinks! That's why she'll take care of it, with her own… two… hands. Details, which she blithely ignores. At least she's not already burdened with plates. "We'll meet up… there." She points to a bit of beach that's not utterly mobbed, down near the water without being in soak-your-feet territory.

Darsce will have socks with Jethaniel any day! And when she returns, maybe she'll nibble his sausage too. "I heard that Mom," Darsce says flippantly as she sashays back through the area with two fruity drinks in hand. "My own mother, always trying to disown me!" Hear the violins playing? Weep for her! She doesn't stop walking, smirking instead in a cat got the cream fashion as she retreats before the Weyrwoman can correct her. Juuuust pulling your chain, Stepmom! "Here you go, Sugar," she says sweetly to Jethaniel upon her return, offering him his drink.

Kale snerks at Idrissa and makes a face. "Sure I do. Every day've my life I dream of settin' down my hammer and trading it in for … plates." A laugh follows and he shakes his head. "Only in your dreams. And I'm only serving you because you're injured. Any other day you'd be on your own. So, c'mon. Tell me what you want." Attention drifts to Soriana as she offers to get their drinks for them. Drinks! Like klah and punch and cider and.. "I'll take an ale," he says, as if this is something he partakes of often. Because.. he totally wants to make it seem as if he does. And the plates he'd holding gets a little bit of everything on it, one of which getting a bit more than the other.

Jethaniel accepts the drink from Darsce. "Ah, thank you." He takes a sip. "…it is rather sweet," he agrees. He looks contemplative for a moment, then chuckles. "Though not, I think, quite enough to be supersaturated." He takes another sip, and lowers the drink. Now is the moment to make conversation. To converse, on topics which are, ideally, of interest to both parties. Or all the applicable parties, in the case of three-or-more way conversations. The first step is to provide a topic. Any topic. Any topic at all. For instance: "Those cirrostratus clouds will likely make for an interesting sunset."

"Why does that not surprise me?" Thea says darkly in regard to Darsce's imperious ordering him around. "She gets it from her mother - her real mother," she amends in a slightly louder tone called towards the retreating blonde's back. Hmph! She makes sounds of agreement with Rou'x. "I wouldn't mind trying a spear. I guess you could give me a lesson or two, A'dmar. Though I'm thinking maybe my flamethrower might be a great second option." She's pretty good with the crossbow, but she's not at all above overkill when it comes to dangerous crawly critters she's never seen before. While the two catch up, she eats and listens, eyes scanning the crowd, meeting other gazes once in awhile, smiling in response. Her knot is on her shoulder as it always is, and Hil's searching around is noted, so she waves. "Can I help you?" She headtilts, curious. Maybe he's looking for the food? "I'm Thea. The food is there, drinks over there."

A'dmar savours the wine left in his glass, listening to the mention of Zahl and how she was alright! "She's likely to be more confident now in how she stands, especially with her past revealed and who she is come to light," no more identity crisis for the girl. As for the weapons, he doesn't disagree on that point, nodding all the same, "Never know what might happen, indeed." As for Thea's reaction to Darsce, he does chuckle, "You sure?" A jest, an actual jest! More deadpan than otherwise, but still, he took a crack at Thea. There is some room to wiggle about the spear lessons, nodding, "Like Rou'x mentioned, it's always good to learn other weapons. It's a deal if you teach me how to operate one of those flamethrowers." He's never touched one in his life, might as well try.

Idrissa waves after Soriana. "I'll take cider, please." She peers over at Kale and chuckles softly before pointing at a few things. "Well I'll take advantage of this then. Some of that, and maybe that.." As such she picks out good yummy things for the three to share it seems. "Maybe, just /maybe/ I can help you carry a plate." Well it is possible! At least she seems a bit brighter then before, seems all the talking with her friends has done some good.

"I mighta thought about bein' a guard to get to carry somethin' hefty around with me, but all that runnin' about n' stuff never appealed to my physical self." Rou'x winks at both Thea and A'dmar, tilting her chin down to draw attention to a figure that's really not best made for running and the like. "Runnin' the search n' rescue wing means plenty've action, though. Not of the stabby-kind, but it don't half feel good draggin' someone t' safety." She shrugs one shoulder, leaning back in her chair to watch Darsce leave. "She yours in a fashion then, Weyrwoman?"

Ale, huh? Soriana gives Kale a dubious look. Yeah, she knows she hasn't seen as much of him lately, what with their apprenticeships and all, but she is nevertheless dubious. "Okaaay," she tells him, then nods to Idrissa's more usual request before making her way through the crowds to the drinks. Dodge, weave, duck, pause instead of cutting in front of Hil (respect for her elders and all), nod to people as she passes them… y'know, all the usual things for navigating a celebratory crowd.

Darsce gets goosed by an Ers’lan. Not totally unexpected, after all she does have a rather nice tush. Still she jumps a little, eyeing Ers'lan through the lashes of her iceblue eyes. "You can tell him yourself," she drawls, stepping back to allow him into the 'circle'. Though if he man-flirts she'll probably roll her eyes at the brownrider and be very amused at Jethaniel's reaction to him. She nods and sips her own drink. "It's pineapple, orange, brown sugar and rum." And vodka, which he won't taste. Squinting at the darkening sky she tries to see the clouds he’s mentioned amongst the stars, "Tomorrow night maybe," she says with a flickered wink.

Ers'lan gives a good chuckle for the blond's jump and her reactionary gaze toward him, offering her a bold grin that suits his oh so charming features. Darsce's drawl does indeed make Ers'lan consider Jethaniel there standing in that manskirt, "Pretty legs thar lad. Tha skirt be showin 'em off nice and fine like." Oh yeah, he doesn't hold back in a party atmosphere. He's not on duty if the mug of ale has anything to say about it, chugging back some and wiping his mouth off with the back of his sleeve.

"Hil, rider to bronze Osraebukath. Eastern's greetings, Weyrwoman Thea." He remembered her name at least! He offers a little bow of his head to the Senior before glancing over his shoulder and around him before making any more moves. The last thing he wants to do is cause a stampede as he catches sand on fire or something. "This is a wonderful event, I-er…" A skirt. It's a bloody skirt. He's wearing… The bronzerider peers a little dumb founded at the kilt, boggling for a minute until he remembers who he's weyrmated with. There's unspeakable things that trump a kilt. His shoulders slump for a moment and he takes a deep breath, offering a crooked smile. "No heels to go with it?"

Plates are piled high with all sorts of good stuff! With Kale carrying them both, he looks like a total hog. But does he relent one to Idrissa? "So you can drop it and blame it on me? The cooks will be on my case from now til next Turnover for wasting their meal. No thank you. You just hobble along to where Sori wants us to be," he teases while masterfully balancing both plates stocked with too much food around and past people who aren't being so careful with where they're walking. "S'cuse us. Pardon. Hey, did you know Weyrwoman Thea is here?" he says over a shoulder as they near the claimed spot. "Wonder if she's still about. She may want to see you later. Make sure you're alright."

A'dmar listens to the wingleader speak of hefty weapons and the chances of being a guard, leaning back with his wine, being polite enough not to interrupt her. His eyes do take in her physical form when Rou'x brings it up, "I'm not built to handle a heavy axe," something that he'll never worry about. He doesn't have thick muscles like some of the riders around here. It's just the way it was.

Jethaniel raises one eyebrow at the prospect of being told. He glances to Ers'lan, awaiting an explanation! While he does, he takes another sip of the drink, the better to dissect the ingredients on his tongue. With the manual before him, he can indeed detect the pineapple, orange, brown sugar, and rum. Not the vodka, though. At least not yet. He'll have to get that from observing secondary or tertiary effects. Speaking of observation, Ers'lan provides his. In response, Jethaniel smiles. "Ah. Thank you." Is his smile perhaps slightly wider than the usual already? Just how strong did Darsce mix that drink? Jethaniel continues. "It's rather interesting, how it draws attention to the contours while actually, in combination with the socks, covering more surface area than the average pair of shorts. Really quite fascinating." He practically beams to the wingleader, then glances back to Darsce. "Ah, I suppose you're right, though I doubt they'll be there tomorrow. This time of year, the weather is rather changeable." A frown, as if regretting the lack of a sunset he wouldn't even be there for, and he takes another sip of the drink before blinking his attention to Hil. "Are they part of the trend? I hadn't heard that part."

Idrissa smiles and shrugs slightly, which she hald regrets after the movement of her shoulder. "Your rather good balancing them so just carry on like I an't here watching and waiting for you to trip." She offers softly. "Well, I imagen she would be around." A glance is seen and she looks back to Kale. "Oh, why do you think that?" She follows along with Kale to wherever they are going to find Soriana at that place, you know over there.

There go Darsce's eyes. Rolling. At both the leg comment and the mouth wiped on sleeve. Not that she's expecting him to be prissy of manner, but the fabric! Ale isn't the best thing for sleeves. "Don't you have a harem and a couple of litters to feed and cosset?" she asks the brownrider sweetly while her shapely hand makes a fluttering shoo-motion. And then there's Hil hitting on her date! The thought! "Speaking of contours," she begins - because really! If Jethaniel's THAT fascinated with them, "I have a few you might like." She can draw him off down the dark beach to gaze at the- clouds yeah!

"Aye, we ain't all built f'everything. S'pose life'd be pretty borin' if we were though, right?" Rou'x grins back at A'dmar, picking through what's left on her plate to find the choicest bits. "'Course, I'm even /less/ built for sh— /stuff/," she quickly corrects herself, omitting the expletive that comes so easily to her, "lately. Tell ya what, A'dmar, you be glad you ain't got them baby-bearing bits in ya, because it don't half mess up y'workin' n' stuff when you put 'em to work." Snorting, she drags over her drink, raising it to her lips to take a sip.

Ers'lan winks at Jethaniel, though he knows when he's over stayed his welcome. The shooing-away motion has him holding up his hand, but he mutters, "Dun let yer boy be walkin round like tha then… T'will make it harder ta keep him away from the hounds." Meaning him and anyone else who appreciates a good set of man-legs in a skirt. A laugh though for Darsce's comment about his harem, "Aye aye. I be tendin 'em." He gestures to Darsce that he's taking the hint and she should shimmer, going back to prowling through the rest of the crowd, is there someone else's rump he can pinch tonight?

"Thankyou and well-met, Hil. Just make yourself at home," Thea says easily. She rises as Hil walks off. A'dmar and Rou'x are conversing and she should mingle, so she says "Nice meeting you Rou'x, I'll speak with you again, A'dmar, about the trip to Igen." And with that she's off to stop by, check on Idrissa, smile at Kale and Soriana (not checking on the pair - really!), collect her offspring and catch the fireworks when they blossom in the night sky. The celebration will go until dawn but she will be long gone by then.

"Because," says Kale, and for a while, that's all he says. Er. Why would the Weyrwoman check on her? … Oh yeah! Ok, now he's ready. "Because you were lost. On her Weyr. You were hurt and you're a resident. Therefore," he says as he very, very carefully sets the plates down on the sand, managing to do so without spilling the precariously piled stack of food, "she'd come to see if you were alright." See? He has a point! And such a point is made when Thea actually does so briefly, cueing more starry eyed grinning from him til she's gone and disappeared again.

A'dmar cants his head to Rou'x, nodding in agreement, "It'd be pretty boring indeed." He doesn't further his comment in that regard, finding it unnecessary to expand on his thoughts. Thoughts are better left inside. Then the woman next to him is about to swear and he finds it amusing, eyes glinting with mirth, as she covers it up. "I'm rightfully glad I don't have the ability to carry a baby," what guy isn't? Pregnancy just looks rough. In all the conversation or listening, he has enough time to gesture a wave to Thea before she mingles, leaving the Ierne bronzer to his brownrider counterpart. Wine. Wine is good right now.

"An' a pleasure meetin' you, Weyrwoman Thea." Rou'x gives a polite bob of her head, before standing up and offering the goldrider a loose sort of salute. Then she settles back down, rolling her eyes at A'dmar. "Ain't no fun at /all/, an' the end result?" The brownrider pulls a face which just about says it all; though, if A'dmar looks /carefully/, there's a hint of maternal pride there. Somewhere. It's well-hidden! "You got any other tots runnin' about, other'n Zahl? Not that she's a /tot/, mind…"

Ers'lan could TRY pinching Thea's tush, but he does want to keep that hand, right? Darsce would find the attempt SO amusing, really she would. Not only does her stepmother have pret-ty good reflexes, her scowling father is now stalking about. And though Jethaniel's not really 'her boy', she doesn't correct him, either. Someone has to protect him from the kilt-leering lechers, right? It helps that her darling daddy is nearby and so if she attempts to nudge Jethaniel down the darkened beach for a 'walk' it's really only for the young techcrafter's protection. Look at her being all mother-hen-ish. Not.

Idrissa peers at Kale a few moments and smirks. "Ya well I suppose you have a point there." She didn't think about that. An she glances to Thea offering the weyrwoman a smile and nod. She speaks to her, greetings, howis and so forths are offered before Thea is off. Rissa glances to Kale eyeing him curiously. "So what is that look for?" She totally caught it. An during this she leans over to snag a bit of food off a plate that Kale is carrying.

Harvey's been here for a good while already, mingling with his own crowd of fellow Miners, having joined them on the jaunt from Landing. But they've since dispersed, either hooking up, hoping to hook up or just plain engrossed in whatever it is they're doing, leaving the chunky, bespectacled and curly-haired teen to find his own entertainment. With a beer or three down the hatch already he's shucked whatever inhibitions he might have ordinarily been burdoned with, and he finds himself standing behind a bloke in a… skirt. He looks, looks again, and then does a triple-take to be sure he's really seeing what he's seeing, before pushing his glasses up his nose and clearing his throat awkwardly.

A'dmar grunts, "I'll take your word on that," since he won't ever experience it himself and thank Faranth for that. The end result has him pivoting a look at her, studious, trying to work it out what the woman is getting at. It's hard to tell if he sees that materinal pride in her eyes. "Zahl… she's my one and only daughter. I have thre-two sons," he admits, "Young they are, not yet Two turns." There's a bit of a glance to Rou'x, "You?" And that's when he'll finish up his wine and give a glance around for more, at least something to fill the pauses between the conversation, a natural addition.

"Her boy?" repeats Jethaniel. His brow furrows for a moment, and then the light of clarity dawns. "Oh!" He looks to Darsce, then back to Ers'lan. "Ah, you see, it's not-" Another part of his brain catches up. He pauses. He begins again. "-entirely your business." Another pause, and a third part of his brain adds, "Besides, I'm quite capable of making my own fashion choices." He smiles, and turns back to Darsce. "Perhaps the contours of the shore will provide a suitable place for those discussions. Or demonstrations. It's rather a fractal effect, you see…" and in the midst of that explanation, he lets himself be carried off along the shore, doubtless to have some utterly engrossing technical conversations that may well involve his manskirt in some detail.

Kale innocent faces, all traces of That Look now gone as he peers owlishly at Idrissa. "What look?" he says, blinking once. "This is my regular look." He gestures to his face. See? Regular! "At least, I'm pretty sure it is. I have no other look." He pauses, thinking it over. "Well. I suppose I have a tired look. And an angry look. And a hungry look. Was it one of those?" It certainly wasn't the blatant google eyes staring look that he had on /before/ Idrissa's arrival. Nope! With the plates of food now resting on the sand, he helps Idrissa to sit down! Because bandaged people need help doing things.

Rou'x twirls her glass around on the tabletop, peering down into the spinning remainder of her beverage. "I got two. They're… three months, now? Boy n' a girl. Twins. They ain't livin' wi' me though. I don't got time for 'em." The somewhat terse reply is accompanied by a shrug, and the brownrider averts her gaze for a moment of awkward silence. Then she clears her throat, looks back at A'dmar, and smiles lopsidedly. "D'you wanna get up n' go grab s'more drinks? Betcha we'll have a better chance've summat decent if we go on over there t'fill up, yeah?"

Hitting on her man? The last time Hil was hitting on everything was in a bar after his weyrmate decided to flirt with the wrong people. A few broken ribs and busted knuckles, concussion and a black eye later, Hil was right as rain. Then he had to pay for the furniture his face broke. Hil manages a polite smile to anyone who glances in his direction and slowly makes his way about.

Soriana gets drinks, she does! There is, in fact, a mug of ale, one of the darkish ones with malt hops, because malt is tasty. Also a mug of cider, and, sharing the hand with it in an arrangement that is not at all risky, another mug with the pineapple and orange part of a certain concoction. No added vodka, or even rum. She makes it over to Kale and Idrissa without much in the way of incident (only a little bit of sloshing), and extends mugs.

"My boys are with me," A'dmar spins the stem of his wine glass between his fingers, "I leave them in the care of a nursemaid when I'm not at home. Otherwise I look after them." He tilts his glass back to get the last drop of wine out of it, working his jaw some, "I spent my whole life looking for Zahl. I can't imagine not raising my sons when I wasn't given the chance to raise Zahl…" He is on his own time, not Weyr time. The nice part about being an independent. The man adjusts his scarf and blazer as he stands, "I was thinking the same." He looks back to wait for her to stand, offering a hand if he must, before heading over toward the selections of wine. He picks something thick with body and stronger on the bitter end of the scale, a merlot by comparison.

Idrissa is helped down, yay for help! She shifts and shrugs while eyeing Kale curiously. "So what is up with the innocent face then?" This questioned with an amused tone. As Soriana comes over she takes hold of the mug and then points at Kale. "He is up to something." Totally! Though has has no clue what. A soft oh escapes her. "Thanks Soriana."

Darsce doesn't even bat an eyelash over which second brain of Jethaniel's kicks in, even. She simply links and arm in Jethaniel's and the smile she bestows upon him is a melting one. It's totally sincere too because you see… he's absolutely sweet and clueless and nerdy and she just… has never met someone she didn't have to beat off with a stick or try to outwit with zingers. With a casual, "Ta" to Ers'lan, the confused Hil and the awkward Harvey, she draws Jethaniel off and it's probably more of a conversation about how many double stars he's seeing up there with those cirrostratus clouds and how the uneven footing of the beach makes walking a challenge. If he does want demonstrations of contours, well, she might let him explore her lips, but really. Despite all her come-ons, she doesn't take undue advantage. What's come over her?

The drinks have arrived! "Ten turns later…" Kale false grumbles when Soriana comes with her balancing act of partially sloshed liquids, alcoholic and non. He takes his mug and lifts it to her in thanks. "Don't listen to her," he advises, nodding to Idrissa. "She hasn't a clue what she's talking about. I think it may be whatever medicines she's been taking," he says with a slow shake of his head. "Making her see things that aren't truly there. 'Faces' I'm making. Have you seen me make any face?" He clicks his tongue. "Always thinking I'm up to no good.."

Rou'x's choice of drink is a tumbler full of an amber-hued whisky, with a couple of ice cubes to chill it down. "You sound like you're a good da," she compliments A'dmar, raising her glass to chink it off his, if he'll allow it. She takes a sip from her drink, then exhales a hefty sigh. "I don't got a maternal bone in me, I don't reckon. Besides, I know they'll be brought up well enough where they are, n' it ain't like I can't see 'em when I want, but my duty's to my wing. Archipelago needs me more'n them tots do, y'know?" Another heavy sigh, and then she forces a smile. "This ain't talk for a turnover, though! Ain't we meant t'be here n' havin' /fun/?"

Those clouds really are fascinating, is the thing. Honestly and truly so, and Jethaniel is eager to explain them, and the weather patterns of the tropics, and the rotation of the earth - it's all related, you see. He talks, and waves his hands with expansive gestures, and drinks from the mug when he's reminded it's there. As it turns out, he's a rambling drunk, and a smiling one. There's just so many wonderful and fascinating things in this world, and he keeps being reminded of more, and more, and somehow… well. It's a very nice conversation.

Soriana laughs to Idrissa. "When is he not?" she replies offhandedly, and sits down after her excess drinks have been handed off. "And you've always got a face. Otherwise it'd be… a weird creepy skullhead Kale, and nobody wants that." She pauses, and glances to Idrissa. "Right?" Best to check these things. Y'never know.

A'dmar raises his brows, "That's yet to be seen, the boys aren't even two and I missed most of Zahl's life." He doesn't compare himself to a good dad but better than most, perhaps. He definitely isn't one to make 'em and leave 'em. The man nods at her forward motion with her glass, tilting his wine glass to meet her mug in a makeshift cheers. "I was brought up in a big family, to me, family is important. Besides our lifemates, those are the only ones who will love you in the end." There is some respect granted for her mind toward her duty, "I've built my business up enough that I don't have to tend to it constantly. It gives me freedom to come out and enjoy a glass of wine." He's still all business, really, this exotic looking man with dark hair and sienna skin must be more exciting underneath the clean gray blazer? Her last question gets a brief smirk, hidden behind the wine as he sips it.

Harvey hasn't just been standing there creepily, honest; he's been caught up in speaking to someone or other, and has to sidestep when Darsce leads Jethaniel past him. The teen then pushes his glasses back up his nose before brushing a hand through his coppery curls, before nudging forward to the table of Xanadians. "Girls always reckon someone's up to /something/," he interjects in his slightly gruff voice, with its neutral accent. "When really, it's just their way of saying they fancy you."

Idrissa rolls her eyes as she hears Kale, anther sip is taking from her mug as she hears Sori. "True. I'd really rather not see some creepy skullhead Kale." EEEE is the idea at that thought process. "You totally was making a face." She points out with a slight nod, an then she pauses. "Though I guess I have been taking a good amount of stuff lately. Maybe I am thinking things up." Wouldn't be the first time she overthinks something after all. It should totally be Rissa's middle name 'Rissa OverthinksEverything'.

"Ah, now, see, I gotta contest that," Rou snorts softly, shaking her head. "There's more'n family who'll love ya, n' who'll love ya unconditionally at that, too. See, I gotta big family back home, too - ma, da, aunts, uncles, sisters, brother, nephews n' nieces now, too, but I reckon I get more love from my girlfriend than I do from them… or /did/, anyway. She's got a littl'un to look after now too, n' she's more've a mother than I'll ever be." The brownrider shrugs, grinning lopsidedly. "When there's so many in the family, it's hard t'give everyone the same amount've love."

Good point, Soriana! He always has a face. Kale gives her a nod, even though despite being on his side with one comment, she still managed to sneak in that 'always up to no good' statement too. Sigh! Never fully on his side, is she? Now he /does/ make a face. It's haughty sort of one as he turns his back on the two of them by swiveling on the sand and facing in an opposite direction. It's a good way to keep his smirk hidden, and now he can drink his ale in peace! Soriana picked a tastey one, he'll give that too her. Between swallows, his eyes lift to Harvey, hearing his statement. "Ooh. Is that what it is? Do you womenfolk fancy me?" he croons, turning around again to grin their way.


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