Logs:Lake Shore Lessons
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| RL Date: 29 March, 2013 |
| Who: K'zin, Rasavyth, Vienne, Oswinth |
| Involves: High Reaches Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| What: Vienne happens upon K'zin trying to learn some history and geography. It turns out she's exactly who he wants to see! |
| Where: Lake Shore, High Reaches Weyr |
| When: Day 15, Month 5, Turn 31 (Interval 10) |
| Weather: The sky is clear today. The air remains cool and damp, but the weather is overall pleasant today. |
| Mentions: Telavi/Mentions, Quinlys/Mentions, Meara/Mentions, N'ky/Mentions, N'hax/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. It's a beautiful day at 'Reaches. Okay, okay, so the sun should be shining more, but at least there's no actual rain today. The lake shore is a favorite spot of weyrlings and other weyrfolk on a day like today. It's getting warmer, and the lake, more inviting, at least in the shallows. K'zin and Rasavyth are settled on a patchwork blanket on a rocky outcropping a ways back from the water. They have a picnic basket and what looks to be several maps and scrolls scattered on the blanket, each being weighed down by piles of redfruit. K'zin holds one of the maps in his lap and is staring at it so hard, he might just go cross-eyed with effort. Rasavyth is settled behind him, sharply featured bronze face peering over his rider's shoulder, tail twitching back and forth with his eager impatience. It's a comparatively beautiful day at 'Reaches, and that is good enough. Even part-sun is better than seemingly endless months of rain and snow. However, it's probably a little overzealous of Vienne to come out to the lake without her jacket, as she does now. Walking alongside Oswinth, she wears a skirt, a high buttoned blouse and a fuzzy cardigan which she clutches snug around her middle. It might look terribly prim if not for the tall heeled boots that make it harder to mistake her for a child. As she scans the shore, the picnic of maps and fruit-weights does catch her eye and while Oswinth might hang back a little, Vienne comes forward to stand at the blanket's edge. After a glance over his study material, she looks to K'zin, lifting her brows high and questioningly as she smiles at him. She doesn't miss Rasavyth, but he's unlikely to have any answers for her. Rasavyth is the first to notice the rider who's approached, and a little tap of his nose to K'zin's shoulder provides physical prompting for the former Smith to shift his attention. His look first catches on her tall heeled boots and he stares dumbly a moment before his eyes travel, up, up, up in what is a fairly comedic fashion until they find Vienne's face. "Rider-Harper-Ma'am!" He greets with a goofy grin. "Do you know, you're the best sight I've had all day? Please, please, please tell me you'll help me." He gives a helpless look down to the maps and the accompanying documents. "I'm going to have extra classes forever." Such is the drama and woe of a teenager, even one in his late teens. Oswinth receives a curious look from Rasavyth, though he doesn't seem inclined to travel closer to the older dragon just now. At least it isn't too far up that his eyes have to travel; even with the heels, Vienne's height is negligible. But when that big greeting and goofy grin are there to greet her, she laughs out, quick and bright. "Please please please?" she teases, if warmly, grinning her own toothy grin. "I think 'Vienne' will probably save you some time, instead of Rider-Harper-Ma'am." She pulls her sweater tight about her small shoulders, keeping herself snugy wrapped while she stands. "What... are you working on?" Map, obviously, but the details are less clear. "Of course I'll help." That was always a given. Oswinth looks on from his distance and his little chuff is probably meant as a greeting. "I figured three pleases were better than one, when I'm so desperate." K'zin responds with a winning smile, all charm and niceness. "Alright. Vienne, then." He readily agrees, before moving his hands to swiftly create space enough for an additional person on the blanket. "I don't know if they made you do all this stuff at Igen, but they're making us take these extra classes if we're not up to standard on our-- well, everything. I'm great on my math, and fine on my reading and writing, but history? Well, I sort of-- well, failed. Really badly. You might remember my trouble with geography?" He bites his lower lip, cheeks blooming rosy with an embarrassed blush. Rasavyth lifts his head in silent greeting to the blue, before his attention is back on Vienne and the surrounding maps. Vienne lowers herself down to take a seat on the blanket, her boots carefully kept off to the side as she sits on one hip. "There were classes, yeah," she confirms about Igen, if not necessarily her attendance. "I never did excel at math. Is it wrong to say I still don't have all that much use for it?" She has a brief and guilty kind of smile for that, a duck of her head as if she might withdraw into her shoulders, lest some old teacher catch her. It's all in play, though, and as he continues to give her a review of his subjects, the bluerider is listening, nodding. "So you want help with all of history?" she asks as a dubious brow lifts. "Or was there some particular part that's giving you trouble? Do you know what you'll be tested on?" K'zin doesn't try to hide his surprise. It's plain as day on his face: what's this? Math not useful?! "Really? Not for like marks? Or betting? Or measuring things?" Of course, those not prone to Smith designing wouldn't have so much use of math in their day to day life. "It's hard to imagine not having a good use for math. "If what they've already quizzed us on is any indication, it's a good bit of everything. I'm good with the stories, but not the where and the when and the who. To be truthful, I'm especially not good with 'Reaches history, or stuff about the Holds. I just never paid attention to that stuff. I wasn't going to leave 'Reaches and I wasn't going to be anybody who needed to know that kind of stuff." The implication being that all that has changed now that there's a dragon. Shimmers of nothing wink at the edge of Oswinth's consciousness. A first glance reveals nothing special, but a second look will show the transparent ooze that glitters here and there and elsewhere. It begins to betray youthful curiosity, stretching tendrils like the thin strings of a broken gossamer spinner's web. They reach towards Oswinth's mind, feeling for... what? An identity, perhaps? (Rasavyth to Oswinth) "Well, I can add," Vienne points out with a laugh and the roll of her eyes. "I just don't really do a lot of solving for x in my daily life? But truthfully, I don't do a lot of thinking about history, either," she adds in with a bit of a smirk. "Okay, so Holds. You're looking at maps, so you're worried about being able to identify what is where? I know some songs that might help." She sings a few lines of a cheerful little ditty that talks about Nabol and apples, which breaks down into another laugh. "Knowing something about a place helps make it more than a name, you know?" She tips her head to see if that's the kind of information he's looking for. The former Smith looks a little skeptical about her claim for not having the frequent need of complex math, but he doesn't press the matter. "Nabol. It has apples." K'zin summarizes, expression looking thoughtful. "And Nabol is... here?" He points on a map between them. His finger is woefully far from where Nabol really is. In fact, where he points, the likelihood of apples would be slim to none due to extremes of temperature. Vienne's small forefinger comes out to lay on the correct location. "Here. See, this up here is north. So, it's colder. And the growing isn't as good. Nabol is down toward here, nearer the river's mouth, in the foothills." She sings the verse then in whole, describing rolling hills reaching down to the sea, lined with orchards as far as the eye can see. "It's lovely there in the spring, with all the apple trees blooming." But her head tips then and her hand comes back to tuck a loose piece of hair behind her ear. "We should really take candidates out on sweeps. So you can see everything yourself, in person, at least once. Funny that as soon as we know who will need it, those are the very people who can't go anywhere for a while." Not funny, and so she laughs. "That sounds like a better way to learn than this one." K'zin sighs loudly, looking hopelessly at all the hides. "I just don't understand when someone's telling me or having it on a hide." He worries at his lower lip with his teeth for a few moments, "I always remember things better when I have to do something with it. Maybe--" He trails off, and it's easy to see his mind working, ideas flying faster than thoughts can catch up. "Hey! Do you think I could make a game? We could take over one of the tables in the living cavern and build like-- a little model or something of all the places we have to learn about? Then we could like, practice moving from place to place, or follow the sweep patterns or something. Or maybe we could build it in the training cavern? That might be better." He looks hopefully towards the Harper, trying to sort out if he's just said something very silly or not. Vienne considers his idea with a soundless chuckles, her eyes alight and wheels turning behind them. "I guess you could. You probably aren't the only one who isn't familiar with the territory. I don't know what you'd build it out of or how big you'd want to make it, how much time you actually have to work on that... But you should ask Quinlys. Weyrling will come after you who could make use of it," she considers with a smile. So no, she doesn't think his idea is silly. Difficult, perhaps, given his current circumstances. "You were a Smith? Am I remembering that right? Where were you before that?" Meanwhile, Oswinth, whose gaze has wandered off, now looks back to the blanket and more specifically to the young dragon hovering there. But what he really watches is the ooze that sprawls into strings and webs. His answers back with his own touch, sound and sense more than images, the kinetic whir of friction and the vibrations of moving parts, the tug and tide of great invisible fields, and in the middle of it, a polite and quiet mind that observes it all. « Hello. » (Oswinth to Rasavyth) So it's not an awful idea. Knowing that is step one. "Yeah. Telavi is struggling a lot with the history stuff too." There's a pause, "Maybe we could make it a little like dragon chess or something. Like... a game? You could help me come up with area trivia questions? And it could be used to help weyrlings study? Or anybody, really. Like, you roll the dice and in order to move from 'Reaches Weyr to one of the smaller holds in 'Reaches territory, you have to answer trivia questions about it?" He chews his lip some more. "The how big and what's it made out of and all that comes down to solving for x and getting some people to donate some supplies. Doesn't sound like it'd be awfully hard. N'ky and N'hax might help me since they know Smith stuff. If they have time." K'zin seems relieved to have something more hands on to perhaps focus his efforts on. "Yeah. I was a senior apprentice, before-" He doesn't finish the sentence but rather tosses his head, short-cropped locks bouncing, to indicate the bronze head which still hasn't moved much from where it's dangling over his shoulder. That was apparently just what Rasavyth was waiting for. The shimmering ooze pops and clicks and, yes, begins a low whir as it fades into nothing of sight, though a shimmer now and again gives away that the noises and sense mimicked from Oswinth's mind are a replica only. « Hello! » His tenor is equally polite, the sound cheerful. « You are Vienne's Oswinth. » He observes, as though it were not obvious. Every once in a while there might be a tickling tendril of that ooze that examines a new piece of Oswinth's mindtouch and forms a copy to be used in Rasavyth's mirror-like touch. (Rasavyth to Oswinth) "Are you teasing me?" Vienne asks with a challenge the lift of her brows, in the shape of a wide grin. "I said I don't use it in my daily life, not that I never use it." Solving for X. "Beside, I'm not a Smith. Harpers deal in words instead of numbers." She tucks her hands together, slipping them between the press of her knees. "Are you all Smiths? Now I'm wondering if I was remember that you were or if I was thinking of N'ky or N'hax." Ah, before. She lifts her glance to the bronze hanging over his weyrling's shoulder, to smile at the life-changer. "It doesn't have to be 'before'. I'd like to think it's possible to continue one's craft, continue learning and improving. If you're so inclined." And the excitement about the game might make it seem so. The sudden disappearance of the webs puts a hiccup in Oswinth's workings, a blip of static before the great substanceless mechanics start working again. « What are you doing? » he wonders quite simply, politely inquisitive even if he's forgotten to confirm the obvious statment. Though it probably needs no confirmation. (Oswinth to nearby dragons) "Teasing you? I would never." He would. His grin says so. Though his tone doesn't seem to be teasing now. "That's why I said you wouldn't have to worry about the math. Leave that part to me. I didn't say you couldn't do it if you wanted to, just that you do words a lot better, and therefore would be more useful doing trivia questions." K'zin reaches a hand to run it through his hair, "We're not all Smiths. N'hax was a journeyman. N'ky was studying to be a ferrier, so he took Smith classes, but I never got him to apprentice." He gives a little nod to her words, "I'd like that. I like working at the forge. Do you keep strong ties with Harper?" « I am learning. » The gizmos and gears continue to whir contentedly as reflected by the little bronze. « I would think that was obvious. Isn't it? » It does seem that he is watching and listening and incorporating all that Oswinth is sharing of himself into his understanding of the blue and reflecting it back to the older dragon, as though to check his perception, to see if he understands the other's mind. (Rasavyth to nearby dragons) "Mm," Vienne considers, one eye pinching shut. "If you do the trivia questions, you'll probably learn them faster. But I could help you, if you wanted," she offers with a knowing smile. After all, the point is for him to learn the material, not so much to make a large complicated game. As for the Hall, she nods quickly enough. "I do. I like to go back. I talk with old masters, hear the new songs, hear the new singers and musicians, sit in lectures and discussions. It's just nice to be around people who love the things I love, people who see the world like I do. I mean, not all Harpers are the same but..." She lifts a small shoulder for a shrug and, once she realizes she's been rambling, her smile turns decidedly bashful. "And you like to make things. What things?" It is less gizmos and gears and more like electrons, orbital paths and gravitational fields, big and small all spinning away on their own planes, singular and interwoven. The pace doesn't seem to change, either, as his curiosity leans in. « Why should you learn me? » He thinks about webs, the intersections of strands, the stretching radials and spiraling crosses, and he sets them all spinning in space just like everything else. (Oswinth to nearby dragons) K'zin considers, in turn, her offer of help. "Alright." He agrees after a long moment. "It'll probably help my writing to do the questions and answers and stuff." His attention is rapt as he listens to her talk about Harper. The way she talks leaves him blushing lightly. "I wanted to be a Harper." He confesses quietly. "But I didn't have the talent for it. Can't carry a tune. Can't remember a story the right way, can't play an instrument. I tried." His expression is sheepish. "Sounds like a really nice place. A good place to learn. I don't blame you one bit for liking to go back. Do they let you do Harper-y stuff, officially, anymore? Or do they see you more as rider than Harper?" As to what he likes to design, he gives a little smile, "I like just about all of Smithing. I like the stuff done at the forge better than things like stained glass or other stuff that's more delicate. I'm making a bracelet for Sabella, or was, before we Impressed. I've not had so much time to work on it since. Jewelry's not my specialty though. Though it is helpful in bargaining for services." The difference between original and reflection is corrected as each aspect is taken in and slowly perfected. « Why should I not learn you? » Is the response, quizzical. « It is good to learn all things, is it not? » He seems to think so at least. But then, he's only two months old. The world is still new to him. « Do you wish me not to learn you? » (Rasavyth to nearby dragons) Vienne quite kindly does not pay too much attention this blushing, and perhaps, in return, he won't point out the rather bashful, guilty look she wears when he starts to talk about wanting to be a Harper and all the things he couldn't do that, well, she apparently could. "I'm a rider now. Oswinth says I'm a Harper without a master," and she looks over at the blue like this is a compliment he's paid her. "But I don't work for the Hall anymore. My life is here, my future is here." But she grins more brightly for his talk about jewelry, even if it isn't his preferred project. "There's always someone wanting a bit of jewelry. Not so much looking for axes," she would assume, with a toothy grin. But she's also getting to her feet now. "I have to get changed for drills." Skirts are no good for that kind of thing. To nearby dragons, Oswinth finds that reflection somewhat fascinating, and he takes one of those spinning spiderwebs he made and plucks it, making it wobble and vibrate, sending its spin into a lopsided whirl that has all everything else adjusting around it, a new dance of the universe all because of one silent chord stuck against a piece of imagination. « You may learn me if you wish. » He sounds a bit shy about it, though. "A Harper without a master." K'zin grins at that. He doesn't seem to feel badly that she can do the things he can't. In contrast, his expression is one of admiration. "Sounds like a good position to be in. Makes you pretty valuable to the Weyr, I'd guess. It's good to know how to talk to people." His smile is sweet and warm for this. "Thanks for your help, Vienne. I'll come find you when I'm ready to do the trivia cards." He offers her another grin, before bending his head back over the maps in question. Just because he's got a better idea doesn't mean he'll give up on learning the old-fashioned way. To Oswinth, Rasavyth seems fascinated by the movement within the blue's mind. This-- this way of being is unlike any he's encountered so far. His attention is absolute. Absolute, until Vienne is excusing herself, and his attention is needed back on the maps, lest K'zin retain nothing at all. « I would enjoy that, I think. I shall speak with you again, at your leisure, Oswinth. » His tenor is laced with appreciation and interest. |
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