==== November 5, 2013
==== Aife, Nora
==== Nora draws Aife into her preparations for Thread.

Archive Library
There's a skybroom tree in here. It's surprising. There is also a stage, and this room has been cleaned and tidied; it's an interesting space to be sure.

-- On Pern --
It is afternoon
It is 4:23 PM where you are.
There are 0 turns, 9 months and 18 days until the 12th pass.
It is the twelfth day of Autumn and 91 degrees. Partly cloudy, the storm seems to have almost pass, occasional short falls of rain painting the ground.

With how busy the day turned out in the infirmary, Aife had nearly slumped with relief when one headwoman assistant showed up with promises of drink for later. That later had come and the erstwhile healer was more than happy to slink off to the chosen spot of this drink-parttaking - the under-constructed archive library. Her madly curly hair tied up with a large pin, she walks in with her pale yellow bag, drawstring open for her rummaging upon reaching the threshold. With no one present, she takes up a seat right under the skybroom tree - looking for all of Pern as if she belonged right there.

At least all the workers have called it a day. Unfinished as the refurbishing is, ladders and lumber and such still piled about, it's quiet in here now, just a faint breeze rattling the upper leaves of the tree, a bit of damp on the stone around it from earlier rainfall. At least until strike of heeled shoes herald Nora's arrival. Dressed in black with a white belt around her middle, she arrives in the library with a bottle's neck in one hand, two glasses tucked in the nook of her arm and a plate balanced on the other palm. "Healer," she greets, her smile for Aife even if her eye is busy glancing over the progress on the space. But after a few steps all of her attention has settled on her drinking partner and she sets their spread down. It's cheese and cracks on the plate, and a corkscrew. "It's almost a proper ladies night," she says with a dubious twist of her grin.

Having busied herself with rearranging things in her bag, Aife looks out at the call and sends a warm smile Nora's way. Leaning forward to see what all she's brought, there's a whistle of appreciation from her before sliding down from the tree to approach her. "Now all we're missing is the dancing men to make it an improper one," is her greeting, the dimple showing in her smile before she drops down to the spread. "You have no idea what a lifesaver you are, Nora," she notes gratefully, already reaching for one of the crackers. "I haven't had time to step away for the whole day, so I owe you, doll. How was ''your'' day going, anyway?"

"I'd say we should have met earlier," Nora remarks with a glance cast about again, toward all the signs of the men who were working here during the day. "But most of them aren't all that much to look at. Either too thick or too thin. Or too old." She gives a little tip of her head, tut tut, so sad, and with her hands empty, she can pull out a chair and take a seat. For just a second, it's all that hair and that dimple that seem to catch her attention more than Aife's comments. "Tough day in the infirmary? More vicious tree attacks?" She nudges the plate toward the healer. "Help yourself," encouraged even though one cracker has always made off. Meanwhile, she can start in on the cork. "My day was… usual, really. Preparing to prepare." She knows it sounds a bit silly, so her fine eyebrows give a little bounce.

"Age isn't all that bad," Aife is easy to comment, munching on whatever cracker she could get her hands on. "And I ''wish'' it was just tree attacks. It was ''every''thing, one after another. I think only now I've gotten to breathe. Still beats sitting in a desk at the Hall, though. Thanks," she adds on the offer for the food, even though she's already made it to her fourth. Leaning back more comfortably, "Preparing to prepare," she echoes that one with a look going her way - seeking more elaboration from her in her glance. "You mean ''thread'', or something else?"

"I'll remember to leave the gray and grizzled ones for you," Nora teases, the whole thing accented by the soft pop of cork coming free. She sets to pouring the wine, generous but in no hurry to finish off the bottle in one go. "Are you going to have some cheese, too? I guess I should have asked for sandwiches." Herself, she doesn't reach for the plate and instead just settles back with her glass, the lazy swirl having nothing to do with anything. "That's the preparing, yes. For Thread. It was actually… not that I'm buttering you up, but it's something I'd wanted to talk to you about."

Looking dramatically aghast for Nora's sake, "Not to the point of DEATH!!" Aife pops back, her eyes wide before she laughs. "Shit, I'm not ''that'' bad, but I do tend to like them much older than me at least. You've got someone putting the blush on your cheeks?" she asks now as she reaches for a piece of cheese first, pops that one into her mouth, and then goes for her filled glass as she chews. "This is fine," she gives on sandwiches, shaking her head. "I'll have to end up heading back in to finishing up cleaning before I can properly get a meal. And you an butter me up all you want. I do try to help where I can, ''when'' I can. I try to be good for something other than fists." Cue the innocent smile. Taking a leisurely drink now and smacking her lips on the taste, "Now," she continues on, shifting, "what is it you need from me, doll?"

"'Much older'," Nora repeats, a chuckle under her words and over the rim of her glass, sharing in Aife's laugh. Though when the question turns to her, the assistant headwoman turns her head in a coy display, a finger brought to her lips. "A lady never tells," she bats primly, at least until her smile crack wide again. "I assume it's just one of those Nowtimers vs Oldtimers things. The men just don't know how to handle it. They're either intimidated or too busy being vapid misogynists." And she brushes them all away with the wave of her hand. "Are you allowed to go back to work after drinking?" she asks, eyebrows high as she finally, and pointed, takes her fist sip. "I'm thinking that… we may need more people trained in first aid. Very basic things. Triage, I guess."

"An Oldtimer thing, being a lady?" Aife teases on her answer, briefly lifting her glass towards her. "And 'much older' can mean anything from 25 on up to something," she even adds with a light shrug. "Perhaps I'll just work a little harder to get you to tell, hm?" She'll even try to lightly nudge to the assistant headwoman in the arm. "I agree on men, though I'm still in one of those middle states of finding those that work for me. I don't like men already intimidated in me, for sure. And drinking?" And working, even? She shakes her head to that before answering, "I won't be working on patients. Just cleaning up and getting my ass on out of there. I don't plan on getting wasted. Are you planning on ''getting'' me wasted, I should be asking?" That comes with one of her crooked, dimpled smiles before she considers the order of business - or requests. She nods a few times to it before she says, "Sounds sound. What do you have in mind?"

"An Oldtimer thing, being… not what the men of this time expect?" Nora tries it that way, but a close of her lashes and a shake of her head make no promises. The nudge, however, gets another laugh, though if there's anything to tell, she doesn't seem like she's about to crack now. If anything, there's half a beat of quiet distraction as she smiles over her glass. "I'm not planning on getting you drunk, no," she assures unnecessarily, the grin wide again. Then, instead of diving right into her plans for the Weyr, she pauses to narrow her glance at Aife, a bit of something wry curving her mouth. "You're rather a rough and tumble sort for a healer, aren't you." Did she mention fists just a moment ago? "Not quite what I expected."

"What ''do'' the men of this time expect?" Aife prompts that with interest as she demolishes most of the crackers and cheese laid out in record time. She's chuckling on the latter, though, giving a half-shrug of one shoulder. "Good," she says on getting drunk. "I can at least say that I'm not ''that'' irresponsible. I am a lot of things, though. Rough and tumble?" She seems to give that one some thought as she idly swirls the contents in her glass - eyes going to the tree. "Welllllll, I've punched a boy or two in my day," she plays it off like it's no big deal at all. "No one expects a sucker punch from a girl, and I've been trying to be a good girl since being here. It's why I draw so much," she admits a bit evenly to her. "Idle hands, and all that. Keep my temper tempered. Have a friend back at the Hall that taught me how that works. Not what you expected, huh?" to that very last with a curious little smile.

There's a purse of Nora's mouth, like she might have a great many things to say on the matter of what men expect in this day, but she'll leave them unspoken in favor of considering the healer before her. "Oh, only a boy or two?" she laughs, clearly not buying the 'no big deal' explanation. "See, now if you were from long ago, you could go ahead and say those things and there would be throngs of other women just like you. Not that there aren't any now just… a bit fewer, further between." Maybe, at least. Even now, it's clear Nora isn't entirely sure. Just thinking aloud. "And a healer. Breaking faces and then putting them back together?"

"They deserved it," Aife gives in open excuses, punctuating it with a drink. "Believe me. I'm always just minding my business before the fact. Oldtimer women were more like that?" THAT gets her attention, and her interest. "More like, you know, willing to punch a bastard in the face? Yeah, I suppose you're right. Could be why I've been getting in trouble a lot. Not since being ''here'', mind, but…" It's clearly food for thought, the healer seeming to give the matter some consideration. "Guess I'm from the wrong time, huh?" she puts out there - part teasing, part serious. "But I think I've played it down rather well. Just the healing, now," she answers Nora's last with a quirk of her lips. "Before, it was that. Breaking faces and putting them back together if they let me. Mother has said that that's no way for a marriageable lady to act, turns ago. Not that I'm trying to go get myself handfasted or anything…" and there's a circular wave of her hand to that in dismissal of it before she adds, "Anyway. I've been much better since being here. I keep to myself. No one bothers me. Maybe I miss the rowdiness just ''a little''," and she lifts two fingers, aimed closed together.

Nora tips her head to the side, the coils of her hair staying neatly in place. "I'd imagine it was tough, too, at the Hall. A lot of opposition, resistance. Something to fight." That sly amusement comes back to her expression. "Faces to break." The pass of her gaze might wonder, too, just how tough the healer's fists are. "And now, just the healing. So you'd be interested in maybe teaching a bunch of people who don't know numbweed from fellis? I don't know what those first Falls will look like but…" There's tension in the breath she draws. "Anyway, my plan is to organize a team to receive riders. I'd like them to have some idea which injuries need immediate attention and which can wait, what they should do in the meantime." There's something vaguely hurried about the sip she takes, perhaps just so that it can hide the grimness trying to manifest around her mouth.

Splaying out her fingers to her own lap, "It was," Aife can't argue with that, but she's regarding the assistant headwoman now with slight interest. "I was never one to turn the other cheek. Just because I don't have the ideal part between my legs. Many in the Hall would like to keep it being a man's world, and I'll just be the one fighting in it." For a moment, she appears demure, "Besides," she notes with a touch of wryness, "how much damage ''could'' a girl like me do? I can try to teach them," she goes on to say now, the demure gone. "How hard could it be? Granted, I ''should'' probably say that those more ''seasoned'' healers in the infirmary would be the better match than the young healer from the wrong side of the Hall. A few of them might take offense, even." Not that she cares, clearly, but she seems to find it amusing to warn anyway.

Ah, yes, Nora can see it, as Aife turns on that demure quiet. It brings a knowing look to the headwoman's eye, conspiring in her glance. "Well," she says lightly of those 'seasoned' healers, "I'd not turn down anyone's help. Though I rather think that they'll be wanting to train some people more seriously, to be proper aids. But please, if you think there are others who'd be willing to donate some time…" The more the merrier might go without saying. "Besides, surely we don't need a master to tell people when they should just apply pressure instead of screaming for help." And there's something oh-so-sweet in the smile she wears then.

Considering Nora's gaze with innocence that isn't innocence at all, "I fear I haven't that much of a good first impression with them when I arrived," Aife admits on the healers in the infirmary. "It's something I'm working on, mind. I know of one there that would help, too. I'll ask him and we get along just well to boot." Nora's logic, though, has her smirk just a bit as she leans forward to pick through the remaining cheeses. "Ego stroking does get you everywhere with a person," is her answer to that - calling them ''masters''. Meeting her gaze now, "Count me in, and I'll ask Devid to see if he'll come along, too. Should be useful." She straightens up then and drains down some of the content in her glass.

Nora makes no attempt to hide the triumph on her face — which is probably more welcome than that edgy bit of worry anyway. "Excellent," she says. "Ideally, we'll have people ready for anything: armed with waterskins and towels, buckets for those feeling overwhelmed, wine… I don't expect anyone to be able to do stitches, but holding a bandage on something superficial and making sure no one is just standing around bleeding on themselves, being able to judge who needs to be next in line for attention…" Aife might be finished with her glass, but Nora doesn't appear to have anything hurrying her through. That said, she does straighten a little when the healer does, reading the signs that at least one of them has work to return to. "You said you have a brother here, too? A rider?" So perhaps the way she's trailed off in imagining the post-Fall scenerios isn't all that hard to understand.

Eyeing the triumph on Nora's face, Aife is grinning knowingly as well before she's nodding to the explanation. "Makes sense," she gives in agreement, holding off her glass idly. "Even something as simple as washing your hands with redwort and putting on numbweed over a burn could be useful for them. Some of them might have seen how numbweed is made, or certainly knows how it SMELLS like, but as to using it?" She shakes her head to that. "So, it makes sense. Gives everyone a chance to do something if that's their inkling." Now she drains her glass and sets it down, Nora's question on her brother getting an odd little chuckle as she straightens up. With a nod, "Th'seus," she supplies the name readily, perhaps expecting the assistant headwoman to recognize the name of the former clutchdaddy. "I imagine he's around here ''somewhere'', locked in the business of the Weyr and all that comes with it," she's breezy in telling her. "We don't cross paths all that often, actually, but yeah, he's my brother. I figured it would be nice, coming here, being near family. At least part of the family I ''do'' like, anyway. I remember you saying something about you coming here with one, too?"

Nora recognizes the name, or so the lift of her chin would say, and then it falls against with a tiny pinch at her brow as she tries to reconcile how unexpected the relation might be. "Yes, I'd imagine he… is. I don't really cross paths with mine often, either. But he's here — the only family I have." And so she's nodding, yes, her brother is here too. "And the more I get to know people, sometimes I feel like I'm just adding names to a list of people I'm going to have to worry about, when the time comes. Somehow I didn't expect it. I should have." It might be hard to tell which of those admissions makes her shake her head with bewilderment, but something does and she follows it with an easier smile. "Anyway, thank you. It's good to feel like we can do something, even if it isn't much."

Nodding soberly, "Same here," Aife says back on getting to know people, and brothers and the like. "It's like you don't want to worry or care, but it ends up happening anyway. I guess it'll get worse the longer we stay here, eh? Where else are we going to go?" She's not expecting that to be answered as she snaps closed her bag and resets the strap over one shoulder. She sends Nora a grin though, the last getting her to lean over to pat her shoulder in response. "Hey, anytime, Nora," she gives easily enough. "You just let me know when you need us and we'll be there. Thanks for the snack, too. Next time, it's my turn." She's firm in that before she's picking a few pieces of cheese off the tray and dropping them into one of her pockets on her tunic before standing. "I better get back and finish," she says with a nod going to her, sounding and looking better than she did coming in. "See you around? Hopefully not in a damaged-hand sort of matter?" Her little tease gets a wink added to it as she prepares to depart.

Nora is quick to lay her hand on Aife's when it finds her shoulder, light and swift as the touch may be. "Mm, you should bring shellfish, I think. We'll do cocktails and shellfish." She might start out joking when she says it, but maybe, just maybe, that thought is now turning a bit more seriously behind her eyes. But nevermind that, when her injury comes up, she turns her wrist to flash that pale bit of forearm, just as healed as would be expected, even though a bit of darkened shadow remains on her otherwise even skin. "All better," she deems it just the same, flashing a wide grin in answer to that wink. Her farewell is offered partly in jest: "Don't work too hard." And she herself sits back with her wine again and turns some more musing attention on the unfinished library and the bits of sky visible beyond the tree limbs overhead.

"The beach, then," Aife looks delighted by the idea - it seems she could find any excuse to go to the beach. "We'll make a Girls' Night out of it!" Her gaze lingers to catch the level of seriousness in Nora's eyes before checking out her hand and giving it one of those see-saw nods. "Almost," is what she says to that 'better', but then, she's a healer. Stepping away as she catches the farewell, "I've worked hard enough today," she states over her shoulder, that dimple showing up in her lopsided grin. "See you around, doll." With that, she's bounding out of the library with much more pep in her step than when she first entered to finish her tasks for the day.