Logs:Solutions
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| RL Date: 4 August, 2015 |
| Who: K'del, Lilah |
| Involves: Fort Weyr, High Reaches Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| What: Lilah takes K'del up a mountain for his turnday. |
| Where: Mountain, High Reaches Range |
| When: Day 13, Month 6, Turn 38 (Interval 10) |
| Mentions: Ali/Mentions, Dee/Mentions, Farideh/Mentions, M'kris/Mentions |
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| It isn't, likely, that much of an exciting adventure for K'del if the place that Lilah sweeps him off to is part of his own Weyr's coverage. But this peak in the mountains that surround High Reaches isn't accessible by dragon, forcing Eliyaveith and Cadejoth to land well below the towering platform that overlooks the world below. The rest of the way, it is up to the riders to hike and climb, as needed. Never the most athletic of dragonriders, Lilah is already winded and cursing herself for the idea, but she's stubborn. She isn't stopping. "I brought wine for the top," she promises to K'del, in case he needs the motivation, careless of whether or not it's a good idea to be so far up and drinking. "And then we'll fall off a ledge to our deaths," is K'del's retort, but then, he's in slightly better shape than his companion, which makes this whole thing easier. "Although-- the dragons might consent to trying to catch us, I suppose. That'd be convenient." He pauses, glancing at Lilah for a moment, and then out over the mountains and valleys far below. At least the view is spectacular! "Need me to carry the wine?" "Someone would assume it was a murder suicide," is hard to decipher as Lilah continues dragging herself up that mountain. She answers K'del's question silently, only pulling her bag off her shoulder and shoving it wordlessly at the Weyrleader. It is only after they have made it to the top and she has collapsed with a whimper, after she's caught her breath, that she answers, "It's your turnday. We need wine. And to stand at the top of the world while drinking wine." Nevermind that she isn't standing at the moment. She will in a moment. It would be difficult to miss K'del's amused expression as he accepts the bag, hoisting it over his own shoulder before following Lilah up the mountain. As she collapses, he sits more sedately, pulling off his jacket-- the air might be cold, but he's sweaty-hot anyway-- and stretching out his legs. "Won't see me complaining," he assures the goldrider. "It's a beautiful spot. Cadejoth," he adds, "is confused. Why would we walk and stay on land when we could fly and just, you know, hover. But he's wrong." "Tell him that it is the same reason that we sailed instead of flew, too," replies Lilah carelessly, as if that answers everything. At least the cold air is filling her lungs again, as she drags it in, and she is finally ready to sit up and gesture to the bag. "I brought a flag. So that we could claim the spot for you. Everything that you see from here is yours." Well, High Reaches, but the acting Weyrwoman of Fort isn't making that distinction. "Tell Cadejoth that." "Mine," repeats K'del, heartily amused. "No one has ever given me a mountain range before. Thank you, Lilah. We'll call it Peak K'del, and who cares if anyone else has named it ever." Probably they have. No one cares. "Cadejoth thinks that is silly, too, but never mind." He digs into the bag, to pull out that flag and give it an amused glance. It is a bronze flag, because of course it is, with K'del's name carefully embroidered into it. Yet, from the imperfectness of the stitch, one can probably tell it was done not by a weaver. "Whatever happens, whether Roszadyth or Niahvth rise first, High Reaches is part of you. You are its Weyrleader," tells the goldrider to K'del with perfect confidence, the same confidence of turns ago before Hraedhyth's flight. And with that, she stretches to her feet, breathing in a deep breath as she glances out to the surrounding world. "Though, also, what can I say. I like to give big." The breath K'del sucks in is only partly because of the thin atmosphere; it's very obvious that he's touched by the flag, and falls short on something to say for long seconds. Those blue eyes lift, finally, and his smile is genuine; warm; sure. "You're a good friend," he tells her. "Thank you. It-- means a lot." Now, he gets to his feet, too. After all... he has a flag to plant. "And I brought wine," is Lilah's teasing acceptance of his thanks, a smile tugging briefly at her own lips as dark eyes slide to watch K'del. "Just remember that when I make you carry me back down." That starts K'del to laughter, the sound echoing through the nearby peaks but not (because this isn't a movie) starting an avalanche or anything. "You open the wine," he says. "While I deal with this flag, mm? And we'll have a toast to it, and then you can tell me how things are at Fort." Lilah's smile only brightens at the laughter, and she turns to the abandoned bag to fetch that wine and open it. Of course, there are no glasses, given their climb, so she only needs to remove the cork and move back to K'del. "What do you want to toast? It is your turnday; you should make it," she points out as she returns with the bottle and extends it to the bronzerider first. "To getting older and wiser," K'del decides, accepting the bottle and raising it in toast. "And building positive relationships." He drinks, managing not to spill wine over himself in the process, then offers the bottle back, using his free hand to wipe his mouth. "That's probably the most boring toast in history, isn't it?" "Yes," Lilah tells him without hesitating, taking the bottle and tipping it back to him in a gesture. "To getting what we want, to romance and adventure and everything exciting," is her toast, before she lifts that bottle to her lips. K'del's nod comes accompanied with a laugh. "Better," he agrees. "Might as well think big, when toasting. No reason not to. Guess I'll make that my resolution for this thirty-seventh turn of my life: to get what I want. And the same for you." There's a beat, and then: "Met your eventual junior, a while back." "You should always resolve to get what you want." That bit of advice passed on sagely, Lilah then passes on the wine as well back to the bronzerider. It's the added statement that draws some reserve back to the goldrider's demeanor, before she questions, "Did you?" K'del takes another swig from the wine before he answers. "She's... young," is what he decides, finally. "Idealistic, I think. In over her head. Eager to try, though, it seems." His tone, as he says this, is even and easy; his gaze, however, is somewhat probing. "Faranth save me from idealistic and young," replies Lilah simply in a sigh, giving little away to even K'del's probing glance. "At least the young will be cured in time." Her gaze slides away to take in the rest of the world, a thoughtful study made of it rather than her companion. "Idealism too, probably," offers K'del, along with the bottle. "Hard to maintain it, the more you see of the world. Most of us learn at some point. Beaten down by life; you know." All of that. He takes a step closer towards the edge, all the better to join Lilah in her study of the world. "At least Farideh and I had a positive conversation, recently. Took a visit to Monaco to see how much of a pain in the ass M'kris is, but... I'll take it." Lilah accepts the bottle, but she doesn't drink from it. More, just holds it for the moment as she questions curiously, "What happened with M'kris?" "He... made threats, it sounds like. Pretty sure he was just trying to scare her, not actually intend her harm or anything." 'But still' his expression says, as he makes a face and shakes his head. "He threatened to bring his bully boys and come to Roszadyth's first flight." "And what did she say to him first?" is a low murmur on Lilah's part, doing little to hide her sharp humor from her friend for his absent goldrider, before she finally lifts the wine bottle. "Oh, who knows," says K'del, and he laughs, though there's still something troubled in his expression; for M'kris, perhaps, or Farideh and her person. "She'll learn. I hope. They'll be graduating, soon. And then the whole Weyr will start keeping watch in case either queen has a mind to rise early. Faranth." "Are you ready?" questions Lilah simply, as she passes the bottle back. A pause. K'del focuses on the bottle instead of Lilah. "No," he admits. "But I'm working on it." Beat. "Are you?" "I will be," Lilah counters with a smile, no hesitation there, before her gaze falls to the world below. Perhaps calculating how to conquer it. K'del acknowledges that with another swig from the bottle. As he offers it back, "I can believe it. You... aren't worried at all about Taeliyth rising first, are you?" Lilah shakes her head, the gesture simple and yet dismissive as she glances sidelong to the Weyrleader next to her. "No. It's a puzzle with a solution. Many solutions, even," she explains. "Most people just don't consider them. They leave it up to the fates, feel like there's nothing they can do." K'del's nod is slow, but without any suggestion that he gets what Lilah is saying, not in any practical sense. "And is there a solution for me?" "Always, if you're willing to take it," is a low thing that Lilah offers to K'del, studying him in a thoughtful way. Blue eyes consider Lilah in silence for long seconds. Then, "I'm willing to listen," he says. That she doesn't hesitate, that the answer comes immediately-- Might speak to something. But Lilah says, "Isyath and Eliyaveith command any other bronze to lose." A beat. K'del's brows furrow; he's obviously thinking, and thinking hard. "Do you think that would work? Dragons obey their own queens first." "At the right time, with enough force, focused on only who is really his competition?" Lilah muses softly, still watching the Weyrleader for his reaction. "I think so." Slow and careful, K'del's nod is nonetheless less than sure. "Mm," he says. "Maybe. Part of me would hate to keep my knot through..." Deception. Trickery. Whatever it is. "But that's what you mean, isn't it. People don't consider the solutions. Most of us." But not Lilah. "And if you lost your knot?" But, Lilah doesn't press that. Instead, she only nods for what she did or didn't mean. She continues, repeating again, "There is always a way if you consider all of the factors. As long as you are willing to see it through." K'del doesn't have an answer to that question, so perhaps it is for the best that Lilah doesn't press. "I'll give it thought," he tells her. "And I look forward to seeing what it is you have in mind for yourself." He smiles for that, at least; smiles bright and honest, more cheerful. "It'll be a long, long time before your Dee is ready for the knot." "Or your Farideh," Lilah will offer in turn, though it is paired with a smile. And, the conversation is let slipped after, as she moves on to asking him about Ali and his family and other, more innocent topics. |
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