Logs:Complicated
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| RL Date: 10 March, 2013 |
| Who: Madilla, Nicky |
| Involves: High Reaches Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| What: Nicky and Madilla watch the beginnings of a late-night storm. |
| Where: Lake Shore, High Reaches Weyr |
| When: Day 14, Month 3, Turn 31 (Interval 10) |
| Mentions: W'chek/Mentions |
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| Lake Shore, High Reaches Weyr The rest of the bowl may be barren, grass barely surviving at best, but here by the lake, it's brilliantly green in the warmer months: thickening and thriving in the silty, boulder-dotted soil just before it transitions to soft sand and thence to the cool, clear water itself. A large freshwater lake fed by a low waterfall, it not only provides warm-weather bathing space for humans and dragons, but has one end fenced off as a watering hole for the livestock in the feeding grounds. The water there is often muddier than the rest of the clear lake, whose shallows drop off abruptly several yards out into deep water, and whose edge undulates against the coarse-hewn bowl wall: here close enough to just be bramble-covered rocks, there far enough away that a narrow land bridge divides the main lake from a smallish pond. Between are several rocky outcroppings that form excellent makeshift diving points, though only one -- across the bridge -- has a set of narrow, slippery, quite possibly tempting stairs. Rumbles and flashes of lightning intersperse between the periodic fall of snow throughout the day. There is humidity in the otherwise cold air. The weather isn't exactly welcoming unless you're a fan of cold, winter storms. Snow falls silently from the moody, dark sky, where the clouds are lit only where the light of the twin moons shine feebly through. Occasionally, sheet lightning will illuminate the heavily-banked stormclouds, glittering off the falling snowflakes and being followed by a rumble of thunder, suggesting there's worse weather around the bend, perhaps. And yet despite the inclement conditions, candidate Nicky is sitting on a frosty rock by the side of the lake, leaning back to get a good view of the sky above. He occasionally wipes a snowflake out of his face with a gloved hand, but otherwise he's still. It's long been Madilla's habit to walk of an evening, after her children are in bed and before she heads that way herself. The weather may not be especially enticing, but it doesn't seem to be bothering her, now, as she meanders through the snowdrifts, staring off into space with a distantly thoughtful expression on her face. As she approaches the lake, she becomes slightly more aware, probably because of the proximity of the treacherous ice; it's then that she hesitates, catching sight of Nicky through the evening gloom. "Hello," she calls, voice clear and friendly in a way that suggests she's not quite sure who it is she's greeting. Nicky recognises Madilla's voice as it snaps him out of his thoughts, and he turns on his rocky perch to face her. "E-evening, miss Madilla!" The candidate pushes his badly-knit hat higher up his brow, then slips down from his rock to come towards her. If the stammer didn't give him away already, he's soon close enough to see properly, in all his coltish... well, not glory, but along those lines. He stands there with his hands in the pockets of his knee-length coat, grinning crookedly. "I'm j-just watching the s-storm build... isn't it b-beautiful?" "Hello, Nicky," says Madilla, who has an ease with names and recognition, and seems genuinely pleased to see the Candidate. She comes to a halt a few steps away from him, turning her head so that she can glance up towards the sky at the incoming storm. "Mm," she agrees. "It is beautiful. I sometimes wish I had a room with a window, just so I could sit in relative warmth indoors, and still watch. Perhaps I should just try watching in the Greenhouse, sometime." The healer wipes snowflakes away from her face, biting back a shiver. "How are you, anyway?" Watching from the Greenhouse had apparently never occurred to Nicky, as the suggestion elicits an expression that pretty much says 'that's genius!' He turns his brown eyes back up to the sky, grinning when he looks back down to Madilla. "I'm g-good, thank you." His head dips in a polite nod, and the grin that grows as he looks at his toes becomes even wider when he raises his gaze again. "W-Weyrlife is n-never dull, miss Madilla." Madilla's smile broadens distinctly at Nicky's reaction. Digging her hands into her pockets, she says, "You can just call me 'Madilla', if you'd like. Journeyman, if you must. I'm glad to hear that you're well, though... what's not-dull at the moment? Aside from the obvious, I suppose." Her expression has turned faintly far-away, as though she's thinking about things far beyond the obvious, though none of that detracts from her smile. "I've been here nearly fourteen turns, and I'm still not sure I'm used to things, sometimes." "Madilla." Nicky tests the name, giving the woman a nod. "Um, well, n-nothing's dull, really, b-but it's just been n-nice to meet s-so many new people. B-back home, we d-don't get visitors all t-too often, and those that d-do come are the s-same people." He shrugs one of his broad shoulders - and then his expression changes, slightly worried and very apologetic. "I f-forgot to ask how you are, m-miss Ma-- Madilla," he corrects himself, blushing slightly. Given the rosiness already in his cheeks from the cold air, though, it's not overly noticeable. "How are you doing?" Madilla turns her gaze back on Nicky, part apologetic and part unfailingly warm, and smiles. "I remember what that was like," she says. "When I was a little girl, we didn't have many visitors, either. It was strange, so very strange, moving to Healer Hall - and then here." She doesn't seem bothered by his so-called lapse, and shakes her head firmly as if to dismiss it, adding, "I'm well enough, thank you. Looking forward to spring, I think. Trying not to worry over things I cannot fix. You must be getting excited about the hatching, by now?" "I-I don't think th-there's ever anything t-to gain over w-worrying about wh-what you can't f-fix, b-but I do it, too." Nicky gently shrugs shoulders, brushing it away as simply a fact that cannot be changed. A peal of thunder overhead makes him twitch, then he grins up at the sky, and at his own jumpiness. "I c-can't wait for the h-hatching. Um... I'm h-hoping th-that maybe if I g-get to be a weyrling, I'll, um..." He pause mid-thought, biting down on his lip as if contemplating continuing or not. He decides after a second's thought to go for it - "I-it'd be nice to, um, n-not have to th-think about things like g-girls, and... um.. .stuff." Madilla's lips press together and her head nods in silent agreement: nothing to gain, no, and yet... Her thoughts are interrupted by the rest of what Nicky has to say, and she laughs, genuinely, giving him a fond smile. "If only that were strictly true. In my experience, you may not think about it much at first, but later... well. Perhaps the distraction of a small dragon would be enough to keep your mind elsewhere. It's a difficult time in your life, where you are now. I remember all too well." It's hard to see her blush, in the dark and the cold, but it's there. "I was counting down until I could walk the tables, and weyrmate my-- I suppose he was my fiance, in a way. Start a family. It didn't work out that way, of course. Few things do." "I'm s-sorry it d-didn't work out for you." Nicky sounds genuine as he says it, a concerned furrow appearing between his brows. It's only there briefly, though, as he neither knows the details to over-worry, nor will be press to find them out. "I th-think a little d-dragon would be j-just the d-distraction needed, mi-- Madilla. Um... I d-did something I, um, p-probably shouldn't've, and, um, I th-think b-by the time I tell who I n-need to tell, um, w-we might n-need d-dragons to distract us f-from it." His shoulders slump, bottom lip pressed out regretfully. "It was a long time ago," says Madilla, with a shake of her head. "And if it had, things would be different now. I wouldn't have either of my children." In other words: she's not terribly regretful, not from the vantage point of now. Her mouth twitches about the corners as she considers the rest of what Nicky has to say, though that ceases abruptly towards the end, and her brows raise. "Oh dear," she says. "That does sound complicated." Nicky shrugs his slumped shoulders. "I-it shouldn't be, um, c-complicated, b-but... d-do you know wh-when you just h-have that feeling that it'll g-go wrong?" Another peal of thunder, more persistant this time, rumbles overhead, and the snowfall becomes thicker, lit up by the lightning. The candidate casts a quick look skywards then sighs softly, his breath turning white when it hits the cold air. "M-maybe it'll be alright? It m-might be." His smile is hopeful, and he offers his arm to the journeywoman. "C-can I w-walk you b-back inside?" Madilla lets out a low, white breath, nodding through the storm. "I do," she agrees. "And I hope, in this case, that you are completely wrong, and it all goes well." Perhaps the rueful twist of her smile suggests she doesn't expect much to go right, but it's not wholly downcast. Glancing around, she says, "I'm going in completely the opposite direction, unless you're coming back to the Complex. Let's walk as far as the bowl, and then I'll send you off to the dorms. No need to go any further than you need to in this - and it's definitely time we were both warm and safe inside." Nodding in agreement, Nicky waits for Madilla to start leading the way before he follows. "D-do you think it might c-come on heavier, still?" The weather, of course. He holds out one of his gloved hands, and soon has a palmful of snowflakes... plus sodden wool, as they start to melt. "I c-could come to the C-Complex t-to finish up something I-I've been working on, but..." His nose wrinkles at the thought. "Sometimes I-I think, um, an early n-night is better than t-trying to work th-through. I'm t-trying to finish something b-before the eggs h-hatch, o-only it's taking much l-longer than I thought." Madilla takes Nicky's arm, however short a distance they'll travel together, and laughs. "You should get your sleep, definitely. In my experience, you'll have interrupted sleep, if you do Impress, and... well, wouldn't it be nicer to go into that feeling well rested? So many things take longer than you'd expect them to, I find. I hope you get it finished. And that you're not trying to do too much, all at once." The glance she aims is friendly, but there's an edge of healerly concern in there, too: she can't really turn it all the way off. "Oh, s-sleep, um, i-isn't something I'm so g-good at. But, um, I q-quite like the c-caverns when there's n-no-one - well, nearly no-one - around... i-it's peaceful." Nicky's hold on Madilla's arm is gentle, allowing her to take the lead even though he knows where he's going by now. "I p-prefer to st-stay awake with my k-klah d-during the day... um... s-sleeping seems like a w-waste of t-time, sometimes." And look, there's the Complex, promising warmth and non-lightning light. "C-can I b-bid you a good night, M-Madilla?" Madilla's glance is chiding, and she shakes her head. "And I thought most teenagers were impossible to get out of bed," she teases. "Your body needs sleep, Nicky - it's important. Don't put it off too much." She relinquishes his arm, however, without further lectures, however softly said, and agrees, "You certainly may. Good night, Nicky. Sleep well. And - I hope things turn out all right." "Me too," the teen replies softly, slipping his hands back into his pockets. "I h-hope everything turns out right." His sigh, while hardly audible due to the muffling effects of the snow, is certainly visible as itcrystallizes - he follows it up with a warm, earnest smile. "I'll t-try to sleep m-more. H-have a good night, miss." There's a little apologetic wince for the slip-up, then he nods his head in farewell and turns to make his way back to the warmth of the caverns. |
Comments
Wakizian (Wakizian (talk)) left a comment on Mon, 11 Mar 2013 06:25:13 GMT.
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Awww. Such a sweet scene. :)
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