Logs:Of Battles Won and Lost
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| RL Date: 9 April, 2006 |
| Who: Maja, Rathin |
| Involves: High Reaches Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| When: Day 28, Month 3, Turn 7 (Interval 10) |
| Lake Shore, High Reaches Weyr This shoreline marks the edge of the freshwater lake that fills the southeastern portion of the bowl. The gritty dirt of the bowl gives way to smooth sand. Across the lake, the bowl wall rises high into the sky, its face dotted with weyr entrances. A few dragonlengths above the water, glimpses of a level cliff can be seen amidst boulders lining the edge. Just south of here, a smaller pond of water is divided from the main lake by a natural bridge of land. A path leads across the bridge and up to the diving cliffs, winding through a dotting of small boulders on its way. The evening is clear, not a cloud to be seen, giving you a perfect view of the stars. The smaller Belior winks as a waxing crescent while Timor sleeps in darkness. The wind drives against the lake's surface, stirring the sand that blankets the ground. Contents: Qortenenth Obvious exits: LAke Pond Diving Cliff Bowl Your location's current time: 21:46 on day 31, month 3, Turn 57, of the Tenth Pass. It is a spring evening. Maja meanders over from the eastern side of the bowl. Maja has arrived. Despite the chillness of the spring evening, Rathin's walking around the lake at a quick pace, though he looks at one point to have been running, judging by the slight sheen of sweat on his brow. He's discarded his jacket as well - it's been left on one of the rocks nearer the bowl, though he's currently making his way back in that direction. Maja has her arms crossed as she strides from the direction of the bowl, her attention initially on the lake and the dark horizon in the distance. Maja often comes out to the lake to think, and this would be her plan for the evening. Her senses, though dulled by the lack of need during candidacy, are still sharp. Rathin's presence is noted by the time she's reached sand and the woman disappears as well as she can into shadows. She is wearing a dark jacket made of two layers of thick fabric to combat the cold. Since Rathin's not exactly keeping an eye out for anyone else, he doesn't take note of Maja's approach and subsequent withdrawal into the shadows. He's still breathing a little heavily as he reaches the rock where he deposited his jacket, and drops onto the sand beside it, resting arms on his bent knees. Maja waits until Rathin sits down on the rock, and she stays hidden for more than a minute. Once the woman judges the time is perfect, she dashes at him and jumps in a tackle. She aims to put a knee on his back and have his hands held behind him in the end. The thing is, she's pretty strong and capable. The attack from behind takes him completely off guard, and he tumbles off the rock and to the sand underneath Maja with a surprised grunt, the motion driving most of his breath out. Before he can recover, the former guard candidate has his hands pretty firmly behind him. "Cheater," he breathes, though he sounds almost pleased. Rathin's not exactly a weakling himself, and he doesn't seem about to accept a solid victory just yet. Bracing his legs for leverage, he rolls his hips from one side to the other, in an effort to unbalance Maja. "Not in my book," Maja notes, forcing her knee even harder into the small of Rathin's back. Considering the lack of practice she's had tackling men in the past three or four turns, she does pretty well keeping her balance for a few moments. Whether or not she lets him go is in question, but she does lose her balance and fall to the side. The additional pressure earns another grunt from Rathin, "-Ow-. Hey, you're not exactly playing fair here, love." When Maja tumbles to the side, he keeps rolling on top of her, shamelessly driving his elbow into her side in an effort to free his hands. Rathin's elbow contacts Maja's side with a wheeze from the woman. Her long fingers still ring around his wrist, though the side that she's been jabbed is much looser. Pushing her legs against the ground she attempts to roll on top again, and as soon as the less-wounded arm is free enough, she begins to twist his arm further around. "The point of fighting is that it's -not- fair." Rathin doesn't take immediate advantage of the loose hold; first he distracts with an attempts to entangle her legs with his own, to make it more difficult to roll him. Eventually she manages to get the upper hand again - so to speak - and roll him, but he jerks one of his arms at the same time to try and free it. Somewhat winded from the struggle, he gasps, "Usually only the bad guys blindside you out of nowhere. For some reason, everyone keeps insisting you're a good person." He yelps loudly as she begins to twist his arm. "Ow! They really don't know you, do they?" Maja is fairly winded herself and mutters a curse at the effect the menial tasks she's been doing during candidacy have had on her in comparison to her usual work out. "Who's insisting I'm a good person?" She loosens the twist on his arm for a few seconds and then tightens it again. "The children of the Weyr have a different idea of me; they say I'm cruel, heartless, and cold. Which of them do you think is right?" That flailing arm is a problem, but Maja has neglected to see to it. It's a little easier for Rathin to get leverage this time with one of his arms returned to him, though the twisting of the one still captured is a painful reminder of Maja's control. "Rachiel seems to be - OW! - one of your staunch defenders. What did you do, knee some lech on her behalf?" He waits until she's speaking again before he uses his arm to brace against the sand, trying to twist her legs with his at the same time to prevent her keeping her balance as he tries to roll her. "Children are sometimes keen observers of people. They speak what's on their mind, what they see, rather than through the filters of politeness we're all told are essential." Maja attempts to use the momentum Rathin needs to flip herself right back on top again, pushing against the sand with her own free arm. Of course, being fatigued, she can't push quite as hard and may not be successful. The arm twisting ceases for now. "Children also have a hard time seeing more than the surface of things. -- Why, anyway, did you -bother- to draw that stupid picture, Rathin? That's what I'm wanting to know." His arm is regripped, yet another reminder of that aspect of control. Probably a bit more momentum than Rathin desired, since Maja's push puts her neatly back on top. For his part, the trader-come-candidate chortles in approval of the manoeuvre, and since the arm twisting has ceased, concedes momentary defeat, using the opportunity to regain his breath. "True, love, but I'm no child. Sometimes when one scratches the surface, one finds nothing more." He half twists on the sand to try and catch sight of Maja's face, but he can't quite see. "Depends," he answers with a knowing grin, "Did you like it? You know," he adds, not bothering to answer her query or give her opportunity to answer his, "If you wanted a free shot that badly, all you have to do is ask. I won't tell anyone. I'll swear black and blue," a wry little grin indicates the pun is deliberate, "That I slipped and hit a rock." "It would be prudent of you to stop calling me 'love'," Maja threatens, which is not quite as empty as it once was. She listens to Rathin, though she tilts her head back to ensure that he can't see her face no matter how far he twists. "Well, you see, I didn't want a -free- shot. There's no fun in it." Finally leaning to the side to look at him in the face (and possibly lose her balance again) she brings her free arm back again and tries to backhand him on his right cheek. It's a strange angle, but she doesn't care. "An -easy- one is a little different." The slap connects firmly, half hitting Rathin's ear as well due to the odd angle. "Ow. The ear -hurts-," he complains. You're a pile of contradictions, you vixen. You claim not to play fair, yet you don't want a free shot, but you'll take advantage of a man when he's underneath you..." and speaking of that, instead of rolling, he reaches his free hand to try and grab Maja's arm to pull her to the ground beside him. "You know, I've taken my share of beatings in my time. Granted, I've never been beaten up by a woman, but I always imagined it'd somewhat of an improvement on getting beat up by a man. Turns out I'm by and large wrong. It's a shame, really." "A free shot has nothing to do with -fairness-," Maja insists, though with a yelp of her own is pulled beside Rathin. In her surprise at this unexpected move (it's one of those stalemate moves) she lets go of his other arm. "It has to do with whether or not I'm enjoying it. Having you stand there and let me hit you is nothing I want a part of. -- When it comes to fighting, nothing is fair, nothing makes sense, there are no rules, you should learn that." With a smile, she sarcastically notes, "I'm sorry you didn't like it, much." Rathin releases Maja's arm as she hits the ground. He turns on his side, facing her, and props an elbow under his head, thankfully on his left side which is (somewhat) less sore than the right. "You have a pretty messed up moral compass there, you know. Are you saying it's okay for me to hit a girl, then, since there's no rules? I mean, there are rules, and there are -rules-. A guy can't hit a girl, it's not right." A grin follows her sarcastic answer, as the scruffy-haired candidate suggests, "We could try it again sometime. I'm sure I could grow to enjoy it." "You're going to suffer more than you should if you don't think you can hit me, Rathin." Maja simply lies where she fell, feeling the bruises purple. "I'm saying you can take your best shot at me. I have no problem with that. As a guard, people do it all the time. Not that many think of me as a -girl-." "That's different. That's work. This is..." Rathin's hand waves vaguely in an effort to articulate the words. "This is you being a vengeful vixen, which is fair enough. I can take my licks when I deserve them." He tries to be subtle about rubbing at his ear and cheek where she slapped him, though the faint wince probably gives him away. "So. Do you feel better now?" Maja smiles terribly wide at Rathin's accusation, the expression on her face more than admitting he's right. "Doesn't quite match," she remarks as he rubs his face, her smile broader still at his wince. "Glad you could take it this time." With a deep breath, she considers her state of being, replying, "Not really. I'm out of practice. I should've been able to keep you pinned." Rathin eyes Maja wryly, a faint grin touching his lips. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm fairly good at getting out of difficult situations. Though granted, usually I don't struggle if a woman wants to be on top." He lets his hand drop from his inspection of his injuries, and offers with a deliberate look, "We can always have a rematch when you think you're on top of your game." Maja shares a bit of advice, not to mention a nice motto if she kept one, "If you don't have to struggle she shouldn't be there." The former guard takes a moment to swallow, having finally caught her breath entirely. "Unfortunately, I won't have much of a chance to -get- practice, having dull menial candidate duties to attend to, but even if I'm not on the top of my game I'm always up for a rematch." More chances to prove she can beat him. "If there's not a bit of tussle on both sides, it's no fun." Rathin counters readily. His lips twitch briefly, and a smile creeps across his features as he studies Maja, "I won't hold back next time," he warns, his tone serious despite expression. "And if candidate chores bore you so much, why do it? Just walk out. What can they do? Everyone always says the dragons choose who they want, regardless. Shouldn't matter if you're a candidate or a guard, I'd think." "I still like the tactic of surprise," Maja warns. "It's one of the best." She finally sits up, shaking the sand out of her hair and brushing it off her back. She examines her arms a moment, looking for bruises. "I agreed to it, so I'll endure it for the time being. There's no guarantee as a guard I'd be anywhere -near- the sands on Hatching day." "I'll remember that for next time. It was a good move," Rathin acknowledges, "I was expecting you to wait a day or two." Slowly, and not without a wince, he too pushes himself up, flexing his wrist briefly, and his arm. He's gritting his teeth a bit as he does, but he bears it in relative silence, watching Maja do her own examination of her injuries sidelong. "Everyone's at the sands on Hatching day," he counters. Abruptly, with his own form of surprise attack, he reaches out with a quick hand with the intention of grabbing the tie holding Maja's hair back and pulling it free. "I meant that when I said you shouldn't cut your hair, you know." Because of the past hour of fighting, Maja's adrenaline is still spiked, and at the quick move the girl's almost unconscious reaction is to bring her forearm up and deflect. She does this without even realizing what Rathin was going for. "Moving quickly around me can be dangerous," she notes in a slightly apologetic voice. Her smile following that is false. "Because I'd look like a man, then. Yes, I remember you saying that, and you did seem to mean it." "Noted," Rathin says, curving his fingers gently around Maja's raised wrist. His fingers are warm compared to the cool breeze still keeping the air chill. Instead, very deliberately and slowly, he reaches with his other hand to attempt the move once more. A little, half apologetic smile appears at Maja's reminder, though he doesn't voice any apology aloud. His tone is soft, a bare whisper: "I say a lot of things, vixen, but I don't mean all of them." Considering how many hours a day Maja's hair is up, letting it down doesn't immediately result in flowing waves. There's a kink where the band normally ties, and Maja runs a few fingers through her hair to get it to loosen up from its usual shape. "That's more misleading than I am. At least I /mean/ everything that I say." Head tipped to one side, Rathin watches her silently a moment, expression deliberately closed off, before releasing Maja's wrist. "That's the side effect of doing what you do. You can't afford to bluff, or they won't respect you." He exhales slowly, expression momentarily reminiscent. "I can't afford to tell the truth. Comes with the business." Maja waits a few moments to respond, considering her response. "Don't tell me what your business is, Rathin. Right now, I don't want to know. In fact, never tell me unless I ask you to. -Especially- if it involves enough lying that you've mastered it." She gives off the vibe that she'd rather not have to rat on him. Rathin shifts a bit on the sand, an odd expression creeping across his face. It could be because of Maja's words, and in fact, he gets very serious, all his body motions ceasing as he stares at her. After a moment, he touches a hand to his chest just over his heart, his voice void of most the wry tones of earlier: "You wound me, vixen. I'm a nothing more than simple trader." He's staring at Maja carefully, light eyes searching out hers. Given his earlier claims, it'd be difficult indeed to guess at the truth of the words, which is possibly a calculated move on his part. "You're a simple trader and I'm a simple guard," says Maja, voicing her opinion on the truth of that. "The way you look at me I could guess you're not even a trader at all, and what you said to Satiet is definitely suspicious. Certainly, if you want me to find out, leaving all these clues, I'd be able to." Taking a deep breath, she glances towards the bowl and dusts sand off her pants. "Perhaps we should go back to the barracks." Rathin chortles at that, pleased. "Just so." He brushes sand off his shirt, absently, though his eyes don't stray from Maja's. "You're welcome to check up on me, though I imagine Garain wouldn't have very nice things to say about me. Except that he's glad I'm gone. Moll Searched me, so you should definitely question her. And Satiet..." he trails off at that, expression inscrutable once more. "...the esteemed weyrwoman a whole other pot of fish. You should ask her about the necklace with the pink stone she has." The faintest of smiles flickers at her suggestion, and he rises smoothly, offering the other candidate a hand despite being unsure if she'll accept the help or not. "I think I'll detour past the bathing caverns, myself. I have sand in places where sand -really- shouldn't go." "If I find I want to know, perhaps I will ask." Maja considers the offered hand far too long, then grabs ahold of it to help herself up. "I don't expect Satiet to want to share any sort of life experiences with me, but maybe one of those others." The guard begins to walk towards the bowl. "Perhaps I'll join you in a bath, briefly, if only because my hair is full of sand as well." Rathin waits with apparent patience for Maja's decision, and braces himself a little as he helps to pull the other candidate up. There's a faint grunt, and after he releases her hand, he rubs subtly at his shoulder as they walk towards the bowl. "Oh, I don't know. She can really open up if you get under her skin in the right way. I imagine not many people try. She's like a flower that wants for neglect." The faintly humourous tone is back, suggesting facetiousness in some part of his words. A sidelong glance, then: "I suggest a truce, and no attempted drownings. I've got infirmary duty tomorrow."
To: Maja Subject: A (sort of) present... A message slate is left on your cot when you return from afternoon chores. It's unmistakably a drawing of you again (the 'GRRR!' beside your head is probably a giveaway), but this time you've got some little boy pinned beneath you - at least, he's little compared to you. The boy's yelling out, 'Inside I bet you're a sweet girl who just wants to be loved. OWW!' |
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