Logs:Setting the Scene
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| RL Date: 18 January, 2014 |
| Who: Ali, Lilah, Iska |
| Involves: Fort Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| What: Lilah comes to seek Ali out to tell her she's been Searched and to settle matters with her Dice job. Ali has some other ideas about how to handle candidacy. |
| Where: Ali's weyr, Fort Weyr |
| When: Day 4, Month 11, Turn 33 (Interval 10) |
| Mentions: Reyvar/Mentions, Ebeny/Mentions, N'rov/Mentions, N'dalis/Mentions, Vash/Mentions |
| Entering Ali's weyr is probably a little less intimidating than it could be - Isyath's rarely there during the day, since her inclination is to circle high above the Weyr, wheeling effortlessly in the warm thermals from the afternoon sun. Past the curtain, the hearth is burning low to keep out the chill, and the table is full of different piles of hides. Ali's bent over one, writing carefully, pausing to check her work now and then. On the floor, Iska - just a shade over eight months - crawls around inquisitively under the table and through the chair legs. Lilah has no dragon to bespeak Isyath to warn her of her intent to visit, and with the queen away from the weyr, there is no one there to greet her and see her coming. So, it's only Lilah's voice that raises, smooth and warm, to call out a questioning, seeking, "Ali?" She's still in her dishevelled Dice uniform, having come straight from claiming a cot in the candidate barracks to the junior weyrwoman's weyr. "Yes?" Distracted, and a beat later, "Come in." For someone that has been through some rough times, it's oddly trusting, the casual invitation - but then, perhaps she recognizes Lilah's voice. Or Isyath's watching, even if it's from afar. "Let me just finish this sentence-" the junior's muttering distractedly. Under the table, Iska stops and peeks out at the new arrival, giggling to herself. "Sorry, I don't mean to interrupt, but I have to talk to you about schedules--." Lilah enters the weyr even as she answers, sliding inside on quiet, almost silent steps despite the stone ground. But then she catches sight of that child, her gaze lingering as she bends slightly to glance under the table, lucky that her hair is up in a messy bun rather than down to spill in curls that a baby would be tempted to grab. "Hello there." Iska grips loosely at the chair's leg, but there's no attempt to stand - she just stares for a moment, then giggles to herself again, and does a three-point-turn before scooting further under the table. "Schedules?" Ali echoes, as she finally sets aside her scribing implements, glancing towards the hearth. "Tea, Lilah?" the part of the hostess is ingrained enough in the junior that she's already standing and heading over there, regardless of the answer. Lilah's lips quirk slightly, straightening as the baby scoots away, and instead turns her attention to her mother. She answers lightly, neutrally, "Only if you're making it for yourself." She draws to one of those chairs, helping herself to sit down even if she wasn't invited to, and folds her hands against the table. She adds, "I was Searched today. I'll need to complete candidate chores, now and--. Or should I ask Reyvar about getting a steadier schedule, with perhaps a few less hours?" Ali already has the tea pot settled on a tray, so merely adds a second cup to it when Lilah answers. As she walks back towards the table, she exhales in momentary surprise. "Congratulations. Who was it?" That searched her, presumably, as she sets the tray down and begins to pour. "Our tradition is to allow candidates who already have jobs here to continue in those jobs. That said, as a candidate you'll have some early mornings. You'll adjust to less sleep; good practice, should you Impress. You didn't get a chance to experience it fully... last time." It sounds like a no? Except the junior says it so matter-of-factly and cheerfully that it hardly seems like a refusal. "Ebeny. Or N'rov, I suppose, but--." Well, Lilah only shrugs up a shouder at that, her focus sliding instead to Ali at that answer the woman gives. And she says nothing for a long moment, waiting as the goldrider pours. Finally, she adds, "I understand, but it's important that I /do/ Impress. And if I am on the sands without any sleep and worn ragged from trying to do late nights and early morning and candidate chores in the afternoon, well. I want to make sure I have the best chance at Impressing as I can." Lips twitch at that- /those/- names. "I see," Ali murmurs, setting one of the cups closer to Lilah before carrying her own with her as she reseats herself. "What do you think weyrlinghood is like, Lilah? Having a full night's rest /won't/ help you Impress." Her lips purse, for a moment. "I have an assignment for you." She sips at her tea, though it doesn't seem designed for dramatic pause so much as just to clear her throat. "I want you to go and talk to at least one of the recent batch of riders. N'dalis, or Vash would be appropriate. They're to be assistant weyrlingmasters as well. Ask them about their experiences of weyrlinghood, particularly the first few months. Candidacy won't be easy, and it's not designed to be easy. But it will prepare you for weyrlinghood, /should/ you Impress." Lilah raises the cup to her lips, blowing softly against it before sipping slowly to gather her response, dark eyes watching Ali above the rim of her tea. Only after she sets it back down, she answers, "I know what candidacy is, weyrwoman. I've been through it before. But, Dice isn't a regular job and there hasn't been a clutch since it opened. I just want to make sure it isn't impossible to do both." She nods, though, and adds a more submissive, "I will speak with as many as I can." "Do you?" A beat, "I interviewed all the candidates that Stood for Issy's clutch. You were last minute, so I never got the chance." There might be insinuation in that phrase, except that there doesn't seem to be that level of slyness on Ali's part as a whole. "Whether it's impossible or not, you'll do it, until we decide otherwise. Part of a rider's job is to do the impossible," and /that/ makes her smile, unaccountably. Or perhaps it's the distraction of Iska tugging on her skirt, leading her to bend and lift the baby up onto her lap. Casually, "I'll expect a report, too, on your findings. And regular reports from /both/ jobs." At least Lilah knows when to give up when she's beaten, perhaps, for all that there is a flash of something she'd /like/ to say in the slight narrowing of her gaze. She only answers a simple, if slightly flat, "Of course, Ali." And she sets down her tea, still mostly full, and moves to rise to her feet. "Sit," Ali says, and the word is a command said effortlessly and without a look in Lilah's direction. Lilah doesn't sit, but her fingers splay against the table in a gesture as she stills. She doesn't move away, but instead waits, expectantly. "Yes?" "While you're a candidate, it's ma'am or sir to everyone you speak to. Now," Ali wraps an arm loosely around Iska's middle, glancing up from the giggling baby girl back to Lilah. "Sit. We're not done yet." "Yes, ma'am." And despite seconds before, Lilah manages to not make the answer sound sarcastic, only a tight neutrality holding her words together. She takes another second to actually do so, sliding back into the chair and folding her hands in front of her tea cup. There's a nod of approval from Ali, now, and she takes a moment before she says, "You've been around Fort long enough to know the history of our past clutches. Things have gone very badly for us at times, so undue caution is never /undue/ these days. Should you upset Elaruth, there's a good chance you'll be removed from candidacy. My advice is to speak softly around her and if the Weyrwoman tells you to leave, you /run/. Now," she fixes her attention on Lilah, expectantly. "You have something to say." "I will." That is an easy enough promise to make, though a hint of question is held in the way Lilah's brow raises into a soft arch. But she doesn't pursue it, perhaps showing some of that respect. "No." And then with a breath of warmed humor, she adds simply, "Though I may be thinking that I should have tried Reyvar about the schedules, first." "You could've, and he would've agreed, but then I would've overruled him anyway." There's laughter in Ali's voice, and a fondness for her sibling that is obvious, warming her voice despite the words that follow. "In either job, I'm your boss. And I'm not the most observant of people but I can tell you're holding something back. I'd rather you say it /now/, then later, should it- change things." Almost absently, she leans to press lips against Iska's head, distracting the girl briefly from trying to stretch hands towards the cup of tea on the table nearby. "I didn't think there'd be a way that I'd miss being a drudge," is what Lilah says after a moment, blunt with the invitation. "You will, very much," Ali agrees blandly. The tip of her head asks the question she doesn't say aloud, expecting more, 'And?' If there is more that Lilah is thinking, she doesn't seem to be willing to share it. Instead, her hands disentangle from each other, spreading palms up in a gesture of emptiness. "I don't want to lose the position. I will work whatever shifts you give me, and do whatever reports you demand," she answers instead. "Your position will be safe, should you not Impress." There are no such assurances given on the matter of candidacy, however. "The Harpers give such fantasies about the life of a rider. It'd serve you well to determine the truth before you commit," Ali says, something like a brief grimace passing across her features. "Are you Hold-bred, Lilah?" "Believe me, I am not Standing for the fantasy of being a dragonrider," Lilah assures with the hint of a smile, though she watches Ali for that grimance. "I am, ma'am." "Then why?" Ali asks, simply. "Because, I need--." Lilah trails off, in the way that many candidates might when faced with the question of /why/, but she's not young enough, perhaps, to pull it off in the same way the teenagers may. She shakes her head, a simple gesture but stubborn, too. "Validation? A home? Something to do?" The casual submissions are thrown out by Ali. "You'd best decide the answer to that question before it becomes too late." With a wrinkle of nose, she exhales. "And has much as I'd like to find out that answer- you'd best get up to Dice and help Rey with the set up. We'll talk... later." Lilah nods, drawing to her feet again with a glance over the junior weyrwoman. She adds only a, "Good bye, ma'am. Thank you for your time," before turning to leave the weyr. |
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