Logs:Big Sister
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| RL Date: 3 July, 2010 |
| Who: Madilla, Sho |
| Involves: High Reaches Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| What: Madilla gets herself a new little brother, because she's a sucker for looking out for teenage boys. |
| Where: Weyr Entrance, High Reaches Weyr |
| When: Day 11, Month 2, Turn 23 (Interval 10) |
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| Weyr Entrance, High Reaches Weyr Cutting through the Weyr's massive outer flank, the tunnel from the outside spills out into a smooth-cut space where wagons often pull in to unload supplies or take shelter during bad weather. Crates and dollies line one wall, ready to be pressed into service for carting stuff around. Five other passageways, dimly lit by well-spaced glows, lead deeper into the Weyr; a draft from the centermost hints at the bowl beyond. Before the last few days Sho would have never have guessed it could be any colder then the water surrounding Ista. And yet here he is, traipsing over MOUNTAINS...well, little hills...of this white stuff that's freezing and causing him to have to cower inside a plethora of jackets, another odd creation. What's more, since he's arrived and tried doing his normal morning runs, his come down with a runny nose and the an annoying little cough. Yes, the youth doesn't seem to happy as he crosses from the stables towards the Inner Caverns, seeking better warmth then a bunch of Runners and Herdbeasts could ever provide. Maybe jumping in a fire for instance. As he's about half way through the snow he lets out a cough and rubs his nose with a freezing cold hand, his amber eyes glaring around at everything that shouldn't be so darn cold. Madilla follows the tunnel from the outside, a waddling figure who is visibly pregnant - very pregnant - even through the layers of warm clothing she wears. There's snow in her dark hair, her cheeks flushed rosy pink from the cold, and she's smiling. Her smile fades, however, as her path leads her not far from Sho just in time to hear that cough. "Goodness," she says, altering her path so that she can get a better look at the youth. "That sounds awful." Sho looks up quicklly as the woman comes tumbling up to him and his eyes widen a bit. It's a snow monster! Oh wait, just a pregnant lady...covered in a lot of layers. Must be what he looks like without the belly. He coughs into his hand again before looking at Madilla, nose running a bit. "No, 'm fine." He says, his stuffy nose making his voice come out a little funny. "Just need to jump in a fire." Yes, yes, he's pretty much convinced that's the only way to ever get warm again. Wait..."I mean sit by the fire." 'Jump in a fire' makes Madilla frown, but as Sho corrects himself, she smiles again. "You must be new," she concludes after a moment more, crossing the rest of the distance between them to give him a considering glance. "From somewhere warmer? I know the feeling - I found my first couple of winters quite difficult, but I got used to it eventually. You still don't sound very well, though. Maybe some tea? I've got something that might help clear your nose out, if you like." The youth nods at the question, "Yes'm. I'm from Southern." He responds, rubbing his hands together quickly to try and warm them. At the offer he seems to hesitate a little before he decides a runny nose is not good and he doesn't want it any more. He nods again, "Yes'm, that would be very nice." He says politely, remembering his uncles instructions to be as polite as possible. He coughs again and shakes his head to try and clear the snot from his nose, not that that'd really help, but he doesn't really know what to do. "/Southern/," says Madilla, with emphasis, though exactly why the place earns that kind of emphasis she doesn't specify. Instead, she tips her head in the direction of the caverns, saying, "Follow me, then. We'll get you warm and feeling better in no time, I promise. I'm Madilla, one of the weyr's healers. I'm not from as far south as Southern, but we didn't get snow or anything, where I'm from; but you /do/ get used to it." Beckoning him on, she heads in the direction of the lower caverns, her steps slow and laboured. Oh that's luck. Finding a healer when your sick. Though how any healer could ever fix this mess he has he's not sure. But hey, he doesn't really know much about healers anyways. "Thanks ma'am. People call me Sho." He says, following after her and rubbing his hands together again. "How can anyone live here? It's so cold. I don't know how you can get used to it." His eyes flickers around the area as they walk, still taking in the new place and trying to figure out which direction they're going with the snow making everything look the same. "I think I'd get lost a lot too." Madilla, of course, has no idea of the thoughts going through Sho's head. She only smiles, saying, as she walks, "Sho? Sho it is. I promise, it really isn't so bad when you get used to it. And there's ice skating on the lake, and snowball fights, and sledding sometimes... I don't know. It just is what it is. We have nice summers, through: not too bad, really pleasant." She swings around a corner, heading deeper into the weyr, distinctly warmer and more sheltered - no snow except what people have tracked in. "It is a bit confusing, I agree with that. But you learn. What brings you to High Reaches, then?" Sho simply follows the woman, dragging more then his fair share of snow into the cavern since he doesn't stomp out his boots...just one of the little things he doesn't know yet. However as the warmth starts to sink in Sho visibly relaxing, loosening his hold on his jacket layers some and standing a little straighter. "Oh...this is better." He comments, then looks at Madilla as he continues to follow. "Ice skating? Snowball fights? People actually stay out in that stuff?" He asks, sounding surprised. But then the last question hits him and his mind races, "My...uh...uncle is a brownrider. I'm staying here with him for a little bit." True enough. Audible laughter marks Madilla's response to Sho's incredulity. "People do. Some of them love it. Some of them can't stand the heat. But you warm up, if you're out and moving around in it long enough." Her gaze slides towards him, casually watching as they walk. "Staying with your uncle? That's nice. It must help to have family around, when you're in a new place." She takes another corner, through into the main Inner Caverns, and then heads for one of the doorways. "The infirmary is just through here. We can go and sit in the office, so I can get you that tea. At this time of the afternoon, it'll be empty." Sho continues following after Madilla, smirking a bit at the comment of having his uncle around. "It definitely makes me feel like I'm at home." He mutters under his breath, more then a bit sarcastically. But then he coughs again, hoping she didn't hear. He really needs to work on his mouth. "The tea would be very nice ma'am." He says, returning to his normal voice. "I would think staying out in that stuff would just make everyone sick ma'am." If Madilla notices that smirk, or hears the comment that follows, she makes no remark of it. Instead, she leads the way through the open infirmary, smiling brightly at one of the healers on duty as they pass. The office is cozily warm, with a couch against one wall, and a large desk filling much of the rest of the room. "Take a seat," she offers, indicating the couch. "And I'll make that tea. We get a fair amount of colds during winter, certainly, but not as much as you might think. People are hardy." Beat. "You can call me Madilla, you know. I won't mind." Sho looks around the infirmary after they arrive, smiling and offering a polite nod to the healer there. At the offer to sit he does so, then smiles so innocently at Madilla, "My uncle told me I had to be as polite as possible ma'am." He states, unable to keep some of the annoyance out of his voice. Polite...psh. The warmth is finally sinking in and Sho decides that maybe he can remove a layer or two and he does so, peeling off the outer jacket that's soaked from melted snow, and then the sweater underneath it, leaving just another sweater on over his tunic. With the jacket and hood gone his hair falls down in its long runner tail and stops at his midback. His amber eyes continue to take in the infirmary as he rubs his hands together in an attempt to get feeling back in them. "And he's quite right," says Madilla, approvingly, as she fills up a kettle and sets it to boil on the hearth in the corner of the office. "It's important to be polite. But if a person tells you it's all right to call them by your name, I think it's still polite to do that. It's up to you, though. I don't mind." Once the kettle is in place, she begins pulling off her own outer clothes, ending up in an empire-waisted dress that shows even more clearly exactly how pregnant she is. She settles on the other end of the couch after that, stretching out with a low sigh of relief. "Has there been anything about the weyr you've found to your liking, yet?" Sho's eyes widen as he sees just how big the yeti woman is. He coughs a little more though which draws his eyes away and down to his hands which are finally returning some feeling. He rubs them together again to keep the warmth up. "Well ma'am...Madilla..." He glances at her questioningly as he says it, just to make sure she's okay with it and it /is/ really polite enough. Doesn't want to make his uncle mad already. "They have some very nice runners here, although I don't know how much use they get out of them with all the snow. I wouldn't think they could go very far." Madilla's smile is encouraging: she's fine with it, clearly. She laughs, as she reaches up to twist some of the damp out of her curly dark hair. "We don't have snow /all/ turn around, you know," she points out. "And some of them are bred for winter endurance, I believe. I don't know all that much about that, I admit. These days, I tend to ride dragons instead. Though," she glances down at her middle, amused, "Not so much of that at the moment, granted. You like runners, then? You're working in the stables?" Sho tilts his head slightly and thinks about what he's seen at the stables. "I dunno, maybe some of them are. I guess I could ask. But I just clean and brush them and muck the stables and feed them and such." Hands now warm, he reaches behind him and grabs the end of his hair, pulling it around the front of him to pick at it in what through the last few years has become a somewhat nervous gesture, or just something he does while thinking or bored. "Oh, yeah, I do work there." He adds quickly, her last question just seeming to be comprehended. "I grew up working with runners mostly, and some herdbeasts, but mostly runners. They're fun to ride and really not that hard to take care of. And you can talk to them and they listen." He says with a smirk. "Ah, they /listen/," says Madilla, as though this is the most significant thing Sho could possibly have said. What it means, though, goes unsaid, because the healer rises from the couch again to check on the water, which is boiling merrily now. She fiddles around with packets of herbs for a few moments, and then returns with two mugs, one of which she offers to Sho. "There's sweetener just here if you need some," she says, pointing to the nearby table. She wraps both hands about her mug, bringing it close to her face as she says, quietly, "It can be hard, leaving home. Especially if you're... sent away. But there are good things about everywhere, if you're willing to see them." Sho watches Madilla as she waddles around the office, rubbing his nose with his hand to wipe some of the snot away. He releases his hair and takes the mug as she hands it to him and seems to melt at it's warmth, bringing it close to his body as if the whole cup can warm his body. He sips at the warm liquid and then sticks his tongue out, squinting his nose, and quickly looking for the sweetener. Once found he dumps some in before sipping it again. Better. But then as Madilla makes her statement his eyes and the mug lower and he talks a little quieter, "Yeah, it isn't so much fun when they don't want ya around anymore." He says, then blinks as he realizes what he said, "I mean...uh..." Well, there's one secret down. Sho sighs softly and raises the mug back up to sip at it a bit before turning his head away to cough a little more. "This doesn't taste very good." He comments finally. The smile fades from Madilla's face as Sho speaks; the expression she aims at him shows obvious, genuine concern and unhappiness. She swallows heavily, and then takes a deep breath. His next comment draws a wry little laugh, and she says, "No, it probably doesn't. It /will/ help, though. And-- Sho. Believe it or not, I know how that feels. Not being wanted like that. And it hurts, it really does. Family is supposed to love you unconditionally, whatever, and probably they do, it's just... I don't know. I wish I did. But don't think you're alone. If there's one thing I've learned, here, it's that family doesn't have to be blood-related." Sho stares down in his cup as Madilla speaks, then after she's done he half turns his head to look at her before giving a half-smile. "Thanks Madilla." He says simply, then takes a deep breath, exhales, uses a hand to plug his nose and downs the whole hot cup of tea in one fell swoop, putting the mug down in his lap afterwards and sticking his tongue out, "Gross!" He says loudly, using a finger to scratch at his tongue as if that'll somehow help get rid of the taste. Madilla opens up her mouth as though she intends to say something, then cuts herself off as Sho downs his mugful so quickly. "Shells and shards," she murmurs, half laughing, half surprised. And then, cheerfully, "Hang on, I'll get you something to take the taste away. I know Delifa keeps a supply in here." She draws herself uncomfortably towards her feet again, heading towards the desk; when she returns, a few moments later, it's with a small jar of mints. "Try one of these." After a moment, she adds, "When i first arrived at the weyr, I made a friend who ended up being something like a brother to me. Who made me feel at home even when things were overwhelming. If you like... you can... this probably seems silly. But. If you wanted, you could think of me as your big sister." She looks awkward, but genuine - hopeful. Sho sits with his tongue out while Madilla goes to get the mints and, once she's returned, he takes it and pops it in his mouth quickly, sucking on it to get rid of the nasty flavor. It starts working quickly and he relaxes again, sinking back into the couch. He grabs his hair again and starts picking at it in front of him as Madilla speaks. He seems confused at first at what she says, then it dawns on him and he nods slightly, grinning at Madilla. "I think I could probably do that. I've never had a sister before." He says with a bit of an uncertain tone as if he's trying to get used to the idea. "And certainly never had one that was pregnant before." Like she's been in suspended animation while he considers her offer, Madilla breaks out of it with a brilliant smile, apparently utterly pleased. She sets herself back down on the couch, laughing as she does so, though she has to brace one hand on the back of it in order to sink that far down. "Well, you won't for terribly long, as it happens. Another couple of sevendays, and hopefully, this one will be /out/. I feel like I'm as big as a hold." She tips her head to the side, adding, "Have you any siblings at all? No brothers, either? Because that-- that would be sad. All the more reason to have a big sister, now, right?" "No, not that I know of at least." Sho says, grabbing another mint with one hand and popping it in his mouth to suck on while the other continues to pick at the end of his hair. "So yeah, I guess it is a good thing to have a big sister." He concludes without much thought at all which is really no surprise. Do they really think to much in the teen years? He looks at her belly again and tilts his head slightly, "How many kids do you have?" He asks then, curiously. At this point he realizes he really is warm now and thus the last sweater comes off, leaving him with just his tunic. Comfortable at last. "I think I'm warm finally." Madilla shakes her head, sadly, at Sho's lack of brothers, but she doesn't remark further on it. "Everyone needs a sibling, I think. But--" She glances down at her belly, laughs, and shakes her head again. "Just this one. So I suppose I should say 'none, yet', unless you count them before they're actually born. I'd like to have more, but we'll have to see on that count, I suppose. Maybe one day." She sets her own mug down, flexing hands back and forth. "It actually is quite warm in the caverns, at least. Comfortable. Which is good: I don't think it'd be much fun to have to bundle up /all/ the time." "It's not much fun to have to have to bundle up at all. It was a lot nicer down at Southern. All you had to wear was shorts most of the time." Nothing like a good grumble. Sho just wrinkles his nose then as he picks at his hair a bit more before seeming to calm down from the little inner tyrade that became a little outer. "Well, I guess as long as I stay in the caverns I'll be okay...although I do have to help at the stables." Oh the agony. His focus returns then on the baby and he oh's, "Well I guess you should have one before you decide on more, right? What if it's a pain and you don't want to do it again?" Madilla fixes an amused glance on Sho. "And in the middle of summer, when it was humid and sticky and awful? I was talking to a rider from Ista just this afternoon, and he reminded me all about what that's like. No place has perfect weather." She's not chiding though, not really:her smile is too bright for that. "Well, you can stick to the caverns when you're not working, and the stables themselves can't be too bad, surely? You'll live, and winter won't last forever. Spring will be lovely, you'll see." One hand drops to smooth over her belly, reflexively, and she grins, "Quite true. Maybe I'll be a terrible mother, and the idea of another will be awful. We'll just have to see, won't we?" "You won't be a bad mother." Sho states with a glare. "If you're gonna be my big sister you'll be a good mother. Maybe the kid will just be bad." Yeah, that's right. Sho starts to look around for more mints then before he smells food from the living cavern...wait, he's smelling! He sniffs and wipes at his nose, no snot, no coughing. "Whoa..." He says, almost like it's a magical effect he can't believe. Madilla looks even more amused at Sho's glare, and outright bursts into laughter at his nose-realisation. "It's good stuff, hm? It won't cure you entirely, but it'll help in the short term. If you need more, you can come back and get some. In the meantime, sounds like you're ready to go get yourself some dinner?" Beat. "And don't call my unborn child bad. It might hurt his or her feelings, you know." She's grinning: joking, then. Sho grins at Madilla, showing his teeth before he peers at her belly and narrows his eyes. "You better be a good kid. Or you won't get any treats from me." He states mock-seriously, then nods his head and stands, reaching back to grab his multitudes of layers of clothing. "Did you want to come get some food with me?" He asks then, turning back to face Madilla, amber eyes filled with good cheer at having found a new friend, and such a good one at that. "No treats! You know the way to a child's heart all right," laughs Madilla, brightly, running her hands over her belly again. She considers the offer for a moment, then nods, already reaching to the back of the couch to help herself off the couch again. "I think I could eat. I'd like that. It's always better having company for dinner, isn't it? We should hurry-- food's always better early, right?" "Foods always better whenever you can eat." Says the growing teenage boy. He drops his layers back on the couch and moves over to offer Madilla a hand to help her off the couch, smiling at her with an honest easy smile. It's been a while since he's been this relaxed really. Well around people anyways. Most of it may be from his own doing with pranks or just the fact that he was a rider's bastard son. Regardless, he feels good now. "I'll help ya get yourself and that big baby up." He offers. Madilla accepts the hand, using it to propel herself to a standing position. "Much appreciated," she tells him, genuinely. "This baby weighs as much as a dragon, I swear." She gives him a fond kind of smile as she adjusts her standing position, getting used to her centre of gravity. "You teenagers - always eating. I remember that." Whether she's talking about herself, or someone close to her (it must be, given her expression) she doesn't specify; after that, she simply waves her hand towards the infirmary beyond, and the caverns beyond that. "Come on, then. Let's get that food." Sho nods his agreement and reaches down to scoop up his clothing again, carrying it with him as he follows behind Madilla. "I can't help it if I'm always hungry." He says with another grin, taking a few quick steps to catch up to her. "I run a lot so I eat a lot. It's just something I've always done." At the comment about the baby weighing so much, he laughs a little, but then starts thinking..."Dragons way a lot though." "I know you can't. That's what happens, when you're a teenage boy. Growing every way." Madilla smiles at Sho, as she leads the way back towards the living caverns. "Dragons weigh an /awful/ lot, so I'm probably exaggerating. But you never know..." Sho eyes the belly warily, almost as if gauging the weight. "Yeah, I think you are." He agrees finally. While he's looking sideways and walking one of those 'growing up' things hits him and he trips over his own feet, stumbling forward a few steps before stopping himself half bent over, saving himself from falling and holding onto his clothing. Tada! He's breathing a little hard though. "Stupid feet." He mutters. Madilla reaches out a hand, presumably intending to grab for Sho, but she's not the most balanced person herself, and, well, he's got it, in the end. "You'll grow into that too, I promise," she tells him, quietly. "At least you're not short. My-- I had a friend who was probably this much shorter than you, at around your age," she shows with her hands: a good six inches. "I think he resented it a lot. You'll get there, I promise." Sho looks back at Madilla and wrinkles his nose, "I hope so. I don't like not being able to walk. At least when I run I don't have a problem." He repositions the extra jackets in his arms so it's easier to carry and starts walking again, watching his feet. He does, however, catch the example Madilla gives and smirks a bit, "Yeah, I wouldn't want to be short...wouldn't be able to reach the good sweets in the kitchen." He blinks again as he realizes what he said, "I mean...uh...I can...see better." Pause. "Okay I stole treats from the kitchen yesterday." Madilla's brows raise, at that slip, and raise further as Sho attempts to pass it off. Though she obviously doesn't /approve/ of it, though, there's a softening as the youth actually makes the admission. "I'll let you in on a little secret," she tells him, as they walk, quietly. "If you treat the kitchen staff nicely, and don't try and cheat them, they're actually very good about giving out treats. It's safer, and it works better." Sho seems to consider those words carefully, tilting his head slightly and his hands twitching as they want to go back and grab his hair...but doesn't want to drop his jackets. "Yeah, I guess I could try that. Maybe I'll help them in the kitchen. If I can get some sweets out of it I wouldn't mind." "See, this is going to work out fine," says Madilla, cheerfully, and then it's off through the caverns and to a companionable dinner in the caverns. |
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