Another Visit

Western Weyr - Living Caverns

Here is the center of Weyr life, the living caverns. These two main rooms were man-shaped from smaller caves, and are joined by a carved arch with depictions of dragons in flight and dolphins leaping in swirling waves. One room has many round stone and wooden tables and a stone fire-pit instead of a hearth. Over the round-walled, gas fired pit is a large conical hood made of polished bronze, with reliefs of dragons with their riders flying over ships guided by dolphins. This hood and chimney keeps the room smoke-free. Through the archway is an enormous hall, with long tables and benches, some carved from the rock floor, many crafted of wood. This room is a combination dining and meeting hall, and can seat over 300 comfortably. Above both rooms, angled shafts lined with polished metal bring in sunlight during the day. Electric lights also burn, day and night.


Morning is normally such an easy time when it comes to getting breakfast, doing chores, and other such work. But, today, Kiley struggles with such things. One arm is wrapped carefully and held in a sling and the woman is attempting to fill her plate while holding it with her good hand and attempting to pick at food and put it on the plate with her arm in a sling After a few attempts she manages to complete her task, once plate is full, a small cup of juice is fetched and then she moves over to settle near old S'chez, petering him about something.

Riding boots click against the floor proper as a stranger to these parts takes a moment to appreciate the depictions of dragons and dolphins carved into the walls. The man is rather large compared to most, due to the size of muscle underneath a special fitted burnt leather jacket. As his attention is fleeting on the artwork welcoming people into the hall, it swings wide to the room which could hold a large capacity of people. It seems a busy place with the morning smells drawing in folk. The Xanadu knot on his shoulder does garner a few nods and traditional 'duty' greetings as he starts to wander in, returned with a deadpan tone all the same. It could be a rather difficult thing to find one individual in all the faces, if it weren't for that sling. Initially he startles, by the straightening of his shoulders, perhaps thinking it someone else. Only, after she turns around he breathes, making his way over to attempt to shadow her, meaning to have come over to assist with her plate, only to not make it through the mingling crowd fast enough. Instead, Ers'lan clears his throat some few feet behind Kiley, making one final adjustment to his jacket before she turns to look at him.

Kaldrozen makes his way slowly out of the kitchens, wiping his hands clean as he moves. Skirting his way slowly though the crowd seeming to be looking for a place to sit himself. He nods to a few folks as he moves though, "Excuse me." He mummers as he almost bumps into the visiting rider. Looking a bit embarassed.

Kiley is entirely oblivious at first to Ers'lan's arrival, being that transporting food while wearing a sling is hard stuff that requires full attention on the task. And after settling and pestering S'chez, she doesn't get too far in her line of questioning especially not after there's a clearing of one's throat from behind her. Over her shoulder she peeks and the computer crafter colors a faint shade, "Ers'lan!" Surprise and shock is heavy in her tone and she's quick to lift herself from her chair, though she pauses in her approach to the man as Kaldrozen almost bumps into him. And then, she's moving, aiming to give the brownrider a quick, one-armed hug. "I didn't think I'd see you." She aims to pull back and casts a careful look to Kaldrozen, "are you okay? You can sit over here by S'chez. He doesn't seem to mind and he has some interesting stories."

Ers'lan jerks his shoulder to the side and half pivots a step to avoid being bumped into, a brow raised to follow Kaldrozen with a quirk of annoyance showing on his face, for an instant. Seeing that his eyes are for Kiley, he doesn't do anything other than mutter Kaldrozen a gruff sea-farring 'Tis fine.' Since the last time she saw him, he's not gained in height (since that spurt was long since over) but he's bulked up even more than what he was. His shoulders seem more broad with the added muscle, his chest thicker, torso more cut and narrow, arms and legs larger. This could all be felt as Kiley goes to hug him, since he returns the hug carefully, so as not to bump her injured arm. "Ya didn't?" He seems to make a comical disappointed face at that, "T'would have come sooner, had I not been grounded… Hah." A trouble maker for the Xanadu weyrlingmasters, this one. A glance down toward her arm is made as he soon questions, pointing to her slinged arm, "Whar ya do thar?"

Kaldrozen smiles to Kiley and nods, 'Thanks, the kitchens a nightmare this mornin." he nods to Ers'lan and says softly, "Sorry again…" and begins to move towards the indicated seat, not wanting to intrupt the obvious reunion. He slips into the seat and closes his eyes for a moment.

Kiley tightens that arm around the man to hug him a little tighter, grinning from ear to ear now and then giving the brownrider a careful look over. "Well, to be honest, I didn't think that anyone would come. I sort've left without too much good bye and transferred unexpectedly. I'srie and P'rel did, and it was nice to see them." The computer crafter gives him a look of surprise. "What did you do to get grounded? That is a little surprising." As for her arm, she gives a slight shrug, "I ran into someone the other day and took a spill. The Healers said it was just a sprain and I should be doing better soon. I was being reckless, I'm afraid, but I didn't want to mess up with my chores." A rather apologetic smile is given to the brownriding weyrling before she is nodding at Kaldrozen. "It isn't a problem at all. The kitchens are rather busy." A soft chuckle and a bright smile, "are you working there today?"

Ers'lan pivots his attention to Kaldrozen as there is yet another apology from him, some realization of who he is showing on the uplifted brows, "Ya be Briana's guy. Yah?" He glances up and down at Kaldrozen, a critical eye on the younger man, and while it looks like there would be something else to be said, Kiley is there hugging him so she deserves more of his attention. "Aye, t'was them talkin of ya that made me want ta get over ta see ya, soon as I could," he wrinkles his nose a little, as if not liking the idea of those two beating him to the punch. His arm stays around her, showing a bit of a grin, "Whar didn't I do?" Head shakes with some exasperation, "First time, Zhaoth be flyin before he be told. Second time, both of us be flyin when we weren't supposed ta, got a bad scar from that…" his hand goes up to a new scar that spider webs from a point on the underneath of his jawline and chin down his neck, covered by clothing but it appears to go further, "… Third time fer smacking a smooch on a weyrlingmaster, fourth… fer drinkin after a mating flight…" He chuckles a little, as if to make light of what must've been a rather grueling weyrlinghood. As for her mention of the reason behind the sling, he tsks, "Lady of me heart," he jests, considering his own recklessness.

Kaldrozen looks up to Kiley and nods, "Yeah." he smirks, 'I wouldn't suggest eatin anything I have had a hand at but." he shrugs, "We got to do what they tell us right." he looks closer at the young rider, and recognition crosses his face he nods and says, "Or I was at least." he leans back in his chair and says, "Let her know I said hi. but won't be able to visit for a while…" he motions around.

Kiley blinks, "Briana's guy?" There's a curious look at Kaldrozen and she looks over him carefully before smiling a little more. "I didn't know she had a guy." A soft chuckle and she peeks at the man. "I'm glad you came, Lan, really." She seems content to linger under his arm as he goes on to explain what it was that he did to get himself into trouble, blinking a bit. Then eyes widen at the scar on his jaw and then brows furrow into a very notable frown. Then as the list goes on, she stares at him. "It sounds like you did do everything that you could've to get in trouble." Cheeks color at the jest and she laughs softly, "I didn't /try/ to be. But I was in a hurry." A peek at Kaldrozen and she grins widely, "it is all about learning. They won't let you ruin the food, so it won't be /awful/." There's another consideration of the other candidate and she smiles pleasantly. "Briana is lucky."

Ers'lan cannot hide some of his surprise at Kaldrozen's first words in regards to the gold weyrling, "Ya were? Whar, did ya two break it off?" Something he wasn't aware of, clearly. "Aye, t'will let her know where she be findin ya. Could be she be visitin ya," a glance between them, "Aye… reckon she did before candidacy," an accusing yet friendly gesture toward Kaldrozen. "She be busy with being a junior weyrwoman duties and that, but I reckon she be happy ta hear where ya be," that spoken to Kaldrozen, with a soft shrug. Then for Kiley, "Glad I did too," arm around a good woman never hurts a man's ego, right? He tries to wave off the frown he gets from her, "T'was a burn… lightnin be getting too close. Dun do that, iffin ya impress. Dun be flying in a storm iffin ya dun narh have ta. Could 'ave been worse." Or deadly, but he seems to laugh it off with a good smile on his face. "Aye, I reckon I /did/ narh try ta be either…" a smirk for her as his finger taps the button of her nose.

Kaldrozen nods slighlty to Kiley and says, "She is a great lady and I hope she is happy over there at Xanadu." he leans back and says, "We have sorta drifted apart though, haven't seen him in shards…I don't know how long now." he nods to Ers'lan, "She had much more important things to take care of these days." he looks to the rider and frowns at the mention of the burn.

Kiley glances between Ers'lan and Kaldrozen as she picks up the story between the candidate and the goldrider with a slight tilt of her head, listening quietly until Ers'lan's attention is upon her once more and she smiles warmly. "It is really nice to see you." Lips are pressing into a thin line of consideration, "I won't, if I do. I'll be careful." As he laughs it off, she slowly relaxes once more and then there's a squeak as he taps her nose. Her good hand lifts to cover it and she laughs. "You're doing better with flying then. That's wonderful." She looks to Kaldrozen and gives a sympathetic smile. "I'm sorry to hear that you drifted apart. But at least you were supporting of them… I haven't seen my boyfriend since I told him I was a candidate."

Ers'lan regards Kaldrozen, showing an understanding expression on his face, "Reckon she be narh inta anyone else but her Sahazyth. Iffin, that be whar ya worried bout. I reckon I be watching out fer her," a brotherly remark if there ever was one. A look toward Kiley once again, keeping her comfortably under his arm with a smile for her, "Aye, flyin be hard… until a rider of galaxy gave me a herb brew ta settle me stomach. Tis worked this far…" He rubs his chin a little with his free hand, "Dun narh expect ta see me flying loops with 'em tho. Jus up and down be fine with me…" Indeed, the prospect of flight isn't one that he's warmed up too, by the sounds of it, accepted if only because he had to. The last of her comment has him darting a look down toward her, a brow raised, "Reckon I be right here!" he teases, though there's a squint of his facial features that imply he wants to know more, an raise of an expectant eyebrow.

Kaldrozen says, "You just have to keep the hope up." he smiles and nods to Ers'lan "Oh we are still friends. She will allways be special to me but.' he shrugs and continues, "Anyways, I will let you two get back to your reunion, Didn't mean to intrupt you all."

Kiley considers again, tilting her head just so and then smiling up at the brownrider. "That's wonderful. I'm glad your stomach is settled. Is it just motion sickness, then? Or it it something else?" Of course she would badger him with questions. "I don't think loops are entirely needed, either." She giggles softly, "as long as you get where you need to go, then you are fine." His teasing is met with a darkening of cheeks and there's a quick shake of her head. "His name is Nikolas. He's a journeyman computer crafter as well. He thinks that I am wasting my skill by agreeing to Stand again, but… I wonder if he's worked out his thoughts on it, yet." A shrug of her shoulders and she smiles at the man beside her. "I'm happy to wait, however." She nods to Kaldrozen, "I'm glad that you are both still friends. It was nice speaking with you."

The brownrider keeps an eye on Kaldrozen for a time, nodding when the younger means to make his exit or at least let Kiley and Ers'lan catch up. Kiley does get a bit of a pout from him, mocking and completely friendly, "Ya did narh wait fer me!" He points them to the seat, toward her meal that she had gathered that was getting cool, "I be happy fer ya then Kiley, iffin yer happy. Sit, before ya food gets too cold. I be fetching a plate." The smells were too good to pass up, considering the lack of food Xanadu has to select from. He wastes no time in moving to the serving tables once he makes it clear that was his intent. Over there, he gets invited to the front of the line, as Xanadu's plight is public knowledge. It takes no time at all then for the man to return with a heaping plate of breakfast morsels, from sausages to eggs and flat cakes. There's a big grin on his face as he settles down with it and a full mug of juice, saying as an aside to Kiley, "Jus might be comin back fer food…iffin I can't sneak no more smooches from ya." A wink as he heaps his fork with egg and sausage.

Kiley blinks a little more for the pout from Ers'lan, cheeks coloring a shade and she murmurs, "I thought you were telling me to move on." She points out and then moves carefully into the seat that he gestures to. Her cold meal is given a thoughtful look before she's taking a fork to the food and poking at it just a bit. "I am happy, thank you. We've got a lot of food. I'srie and P'rel took a good load down while they were here." The woman laughs and nods once before he takes off. She's focusing on her plate as he's away, making sure to get in a decent amount before he returns. "You should come back for the food, I'm sorry to hear that Xanadu is still having problems." A tilt of her head and she considers him, "kissing isn't against the rules here, but you probably shouldn't kiss me." A soft chuckle and she glances to her plate. "You'll be close to graduating soon. Are you looking forward to that?"

Ers'lan once back to Kiley's side, addresses the murmur he thought he heard before he headed off to pile up a plate of food, "Reckon we did narh figure it all out before ya moved on," he says with a regretful tone, with a tweak of his lips putting a faint smile to his lips, "T'was an emotional wreck n reckon yah had been too. All yer friends pulled away by dragons and all. But t'was good that ya went on ta live yer life. I could narh ask anyone ta wait fer me, life be too short." He boldy moves his hand toward her, attempting to curl his fingers into one of her own, "Cause I be thinkin ya telling me off," he smirks a little at that, "Tis what it tis." Friends are good too! A surprising twinkle lights up in his eye at the mention that kissing was not against the rules, "Be it really that way? Huh…" he contemplates, "Shouldn't? Hah. Tis narh a part of my vocabulary." A wink as he takes the moment to look down into his plate as well, the last question getting a shrug, "Aye… suppose. Dun narh whar I be doing… search and rescue I reckon."

"I guess we didn't really figure it out, but there wasn't too much to figure out. You can't let the dragons get too emotional and this sort of thing is… Emotional." Kiley shrugs slightly, "sometimes it is best not to have the emotions." She looks to him and meets his gaze with a sad little smile, "yes. All my friends were pulled away by dragons, all of them near me when it happened. And I'll be going through it again at some point when these eggs hatch." She considers and then nods once in understanding, "it'd be hard to ask anyone to wait for you, not knowing what is going to happen. I suppose that is why Nik left… He hates that unknown variable because there is no understanding what will happen until it happens." Her gaze drops to their hands and shyly she laces her fingers with his. She lingers there before looking up at him and there's a soft chuckle, "the rules here are different than Xanadu. I can still do my craft duties, I just don't have as much chores as the others. And with my arm, though, not doing too much of either. Have to do it in short spurts otherwise my arm'll take longer to heal." Cheeks color another shade and she tilts her gaze elsewhere. "Search and rescue is hard. But, I think it fits you."

"Aye, t'would narh have been good fer me at that point, ta want fer somethin I could narh have, ta have it interfer with Zhaoth. T'was hard enough ta bond with him…" he says in a sincere admission of the struggle faced during the first few months of weyrlinghood. While she does not shy away nor pull her fingers away from his hand, his thumb gently smooths a circle into the palm of her hand, eyes lifting up toward her face, "Iffin it be meant ta be, it t'will be, no matter whar be in the way." Life would not keep two people apart if it was meant to be. "Dun narh worry bout this Nikolas, yer a candidate now. Focus yer mind ta the eggs and whar your life is now. Let no man stand in front of ya." A piece of friendly advice, though that advice comes with a kiss on the cheek if she does not pull away from him or stop it in some manner. Even if she stops him by moving away, he'll smile at her, "Take care of yerself first and foremost. Work be done by others iffin yah can narh do it. Ya be needing yer strength of arms iffin ya impress. Trust me, haulin meat and oil 'round be requiring strength." A beat, "Aye. Tis better than transport, I reckon."

"I can't really imagine what it would be like, Iess and Py were trying to explain. It is one of those things that you'd have to experience. It seems like quite a few people struggle with their bond at first, struggle with understanding their lifemate." Kiley smiles at the man in a rather sympathetic way, lacking the understanding of the situation. Her hand twitches a little at the feeling of his thumb and she meets his gaze. "You think so? I didn't believe that sort of talk until Standing the first time, seeing that everyone's lifemates were there was something entirely different." A breath is drawn and slowly released and she shakes her head. "I'm not going to worry about him, not too much. I just wonder if he is doing okay. The eggs here are different, Lan. They… I feel much more at ease with these eggs, more welcomed. They're nice. Well, one of them wasn't as much as the others." The woman chuckles softly and cheeks darken for the feel of his lips against one. "I will. I'm on lighter duties until it gets better, just to make sure nothing goes wrong. So I'll have both of my arms if I do Impress. I don't want this to take longer than it needs to." A soft laugh, "it should be interesting." A tilt of her head and then she nods. "It would be. You're helping people. You would probably be working with dolphins and whers as well, doing all sorts of rescues. But hopefully, not too much because it is always sad to see incidents happen."

"Aye… dun reckon I even know how it be fer them," indicating that there certainly was a rift between the class, "but fer me, t'was a challenge. Zhaoth from day one be believing that we be here fer greater things. Pushin me every day and night ta train. We only be startin to click together in the last few months." Nearly a full Turn before dragon and man saw eye to eye. There is a comforting squeeze of his hand against the press of her own, "Ya be findin yer lifemate iffin it be meant ta be. Iffin ya already have better feelin bout these eggs, could happen. I hope it does. Jus wish ya be finding yer mate at Xanadu… but, can narh pick where they be hatched." There is a brief nod for the topic of Nikolas, sliding right into other topics, "Aye. Be sure ya have yer arms bout ya. I reckon iffin not here, then elsewhere, but yer meant for bigger things than computers. I would narh be surprised iffin a gold came ta sniff ya out." As for the last matter, he only nods to it, having first come to Xanadu because of a search and rescue operation, along with Py and Ryeoski.

Kiley blinks and considers him with a slight tilt of her head for that statement, brows furrowing just a slight bit before she's nodding along with his words. "That's a long time to be in a disagreement. But, I'm glad that you're both starting to understand one another now. Understanding is essential when you're bound together." A soft chuckle and she's attempting to wiggle her arm from the sling to use that hand to hold the fork and get a bit more food in as they talk. "Mhm. If it is meant to be, I'll find my lifemate. It is a shame that it wasn't at Xanadu, but, I'm happy here. I have a lot of good friends and I don't want to leave. I'm probably never going to leave Western for more than a few days at a time, whether or not I Impress. My place is here, now." There's a pause as she considers him, blinking. "Computers are important, too, Lan. In their own way… I don't think a gold will be coming for me. I would be better on a brown, someone told me that before. I'd have an easier time working on my craft on a brown, blue, or green." She turns her gaze from him, "I don't think I'll leave Western," she repeats, "not even if a dragon asked me to Stand for another clutch. Western is where I want to be."

"Aye, t'was a long time… reckon that be why we were struggling fer so long," a clash of egos by the sounds of it. Once he notices that she's trying to eat her food, his hand releases her good one with a faint smirk and a little color of his own cheeks, "Sorry bout that. Eat… eat…" he frowns at her use of her bad arm, nodding toward her good hand as he sets to idly pushing food around on his plate, eating bites inbetween and from time to time. As for her proclaimation that Western would be her home, no matter what the outcome of the hatching, he takes in a deep breath and nods, likely what he needed to hear. He exchanges a quiet look with her, something soft, disappointed but happy at the same time. "Jus dun forget us at Xanadu, alright?" lips purse as he peers down at his plate, "Jus hope ya get ta be happy Kiley. Yer a good woman, ya deserve ta be living a happy life and all. Sounds like Western be doin that fer ya."

Kiley mms, "but you've worked it out. That is wonderful." The candidate giggles softly, "not a problem. Thank you." She inclines her head and resettles her arm into the sling and using her good hand to scoop food up onto her fork. There's a few bites taken and she turns a slow look towards him, watching his expressions silently before she swallows. There's a fond smile, "I won't. I promise that I'll come visit. I'm sorry that I'm not coming back permanently, but, I won't forget about all my friends there." A gentle little nudge to the man, "I am happy. I will be happy here. Western is definitely a good place to be. Thank you for being concerned, Lan."

Ers'lan responds initially with a nod, digging his fork into the plate and scooping more food into his mouth, the food cool but at least still satisfying. As she regards his expression, he keeps his eyes pinned to the plate, swallowing down his chosen bite, followed by a swish of juice, contemplating the deepths of the liquid in the glass after a time. His face angles in her direction enough so that his eyes view her from the corner, "Dun be sorry, jus be knowin that I be narh havin many friends and I be expecting ta visit ya when I can. I be makin it here fer when the eggs hatch…" or so he hopes. There's a gentle smile at the nudge, "Tis whar friends are fer."

Kiley's eyes linger on him, considering quietly with another tilt of her head and simply watching him eat. A smile plays upon her lips before she finally turns her attention to her own food and makes sure to clear off the plate before sipping at her juice. "I'd love for you to visit whenever you have the free time to come and see me. I'd also be very relieved to have you at the Hatching as well." Another smile plays at her lips and she sips at the juice once more, "I bet I'll be able to hear you cheering in the galleries." A soft chuckle and she peeks at him. "Indeed. I've got so many friends now, I don't think I could be happier."

"Alright," he nods, "I be doing that then," visiting. His eyes flash toward her and his lips spread into a warm smile he's known to have, "Aye. I be cheering loud fer ya, but narh loud enough ta distract your lifemate." Confident there for her eventual pairing to a dragon. Not a moment later has his gaze going to some unseen distant, an eyebrow perching up on his brow, "Aye. Seems that ya do. T'would also seem that I be havin ta go back to Xanadu now. The transport wing I be here with be done gathering supplies. I be needed to help pack 'em all up and get 'em back to the Weyr…" He gives her thigh a bit of a squeeze, "Take care of yerself then, ya hear?"

"Wonderful. I'll look forward to it." Kiley laughs with delight, "you do that, and I'll wave at you. Just for a moment before paying attention again." The distant look is met with another curious tilt of her head. "Thanks for coming, Lan. It really means a lot to me. You enjoy your trip back." She shifts to give him a brief hug with her one arm. "I'll take care of myself. I'll be completely healed by the next time you come visit." A bright smile and she is pushing up to her feet, perhaps to walk with him to the bowl for a a brief moment.

The brownrider chuckles lightly at her delight, something that was always infectious, the sparkle of mirth in his eyes all the same. "Tis fine. I be wishin I be coming earlier, like I said." He clamours out from the chair, looking at his plate which had just a few bits left. He scoops it up regardless in means to find some place to discard the dirty plate. Luckily the kitchen staff or a drudge comes along to bus it away, earning a subtle nod of gratitude from the man. "I do be missin ya round Kiley," he says as he starts off toward the bowl, pulling out his gloves from where he stuffed them in his belt, fingers wriggling into the wherhide. Noticing that she'll walk along with him, he notes, "Zhaoth says he be anticipating meeting ya. M'nol be sayin he be large fer his size. Tis true too. He be as big as a small bronze."

"But, you still came. Earlier or not, you came and I am so happy. I feel incredibly special to be having my friends from Xanadu coming." Cheeks color and Kiley smiles shyly, handing over her thins to the drudge as well and giving a more audible thanks. "I've missed you, too." She follows alongside him, content to do so. "Really? I'srie and P'rel's lifemates didn't seem too interested in me at all. I'm looking forward to meeting him as well." There's a slight pause in her step as she considers the brownrider. "Shells. He must be huge, then. It always amazes me how large they are."

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