Who

D'har, Jaymes, Kyriatis

What

D'har and Jaymes help Kyriatis climb the wall. Sadly, rope burn scuttles the attempt.

When

It is noon of the fourth day of the fifth month of the fourteenth turn of the 12th pass.

Where

Beach, Southern Weyr

OOC Date 27 Jun 2018 23:00

 

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"Can you continue, or do you need to see a Healer?"


beach.jpg

Beach

An eerie mirror, the glass-quiet Sea of Azov: the clear waters stretch along the dark-pebbled shores, and along this narrow beach. Here the faintest lap of waves belies the calm beyond; here the rocks have been ground down into finest, softest sand - those observant would mark upon the similarity between it and the sands of the hatching grounds. The soft sand soaks up summer sunlight as a sponge; painfully hot during the warmer months, it is only truly pleasant at wintertime. Rocks rise to east and west, lichen-limned and green against the abyssal darkness of stone.


A group of candidates are making their way through the looming obstacle course and some are doing better than others. Jaymes, being one of the more muscular gents in the group, is pulling himself up on a rope and scaling a tall wooden wall that he maneuvers over with way too much ease. He lands in the soft sand below and is about to head to the next section (the balance beams, dun dun dun!) when he hears Weyrlingmaster Rocio hollering something across the way. "Sounds like someone did something stupid." he says with a half smirk. "Or she's just yelling at D'har."

The look Kyriatis aims in Jaymes' direction is murderous, likely because she's not one of those fortunate few, and has already fallen several times. In fact, the distraction of his words is quite possibly what results in the latest of her falls: off the wall she goes, and she was so close to the top, too! (Finally. She's been there for ages, and a number of other candidates have overtaken her.) "Augh!" she grouses, which at least means she's not hurt. "Will you shut up and let me concentrate? I'm never going to get over that wall otherwise." Being small is an advantage in some things… and definitely not in others.

It is entirely possible that Rocio is shouting at D'har; the Jaguar bluerider does enjoy getting a rise out of the Weyrlingmaster. Though he does try not to be too much of an ass in front of weyrlings and Candidates for the sake of respect. Which he really does have a lot of for the greenrider, whether it's obvious or not. At the moment, he's surveying the contrast in displays of upper body strength going on at the climbing wall - Jaymes with his ease and Kyriatis with her fall. He tenses when she goes down, ready to spring forward if she's injured…though she puts that worry to rest rather quickly. "A bit of teamwork wouldn't go amiss, Candidates!" he calls over the cacophony of effortful noises rising from the midst of the course.

Okay, so this just means that Jaymes has to go over there and HELP Kyriatis scale that wall. But, first! He'll fold his arms and lean against the edge of the wooden wall so he can observe the gal's technique. "Mind the wooden beams, they're slippery." See? Helpful! And since it just poured buckets of rain the night before, the wood is nice and saturated — not very conducive to scaling walls. Unless you're him. The grin that curves the former Herder's expression is OH SO helpful. Right? He then straightens and offers D'har a salute when the bluerider makes a suggestion. "Aye, sir." Then to Kyriatis, "Hear that? Let me give you a boost." Ready or not~

"You think?" Kyriatis is not generally the sarcastic type, but she looks pretty hot and bothered - her long bangs glued damply to her forehead - and that (stupid, idiotic, ridiculous) wall somehow seems to be growing in height. Nor does she seem all that enthusiastic about D'har's suggestion, though she gives him a wary glance and a weak-armed salute… not that she can spend much time on it, because Jaymes is there with that boost and her arms have to go up and grab for their next handhold. "If you send me flying over the top, I will come back and haunt you," she warns, quite as if the herder is an circus strongman, capable of death-defying feats.

Now D'har's interest is piqued! Mostly because he can very clearly visualize the burly Herder managing to launch the comparatively diminutive gardener just as she doesn't want him to. He stands near the wall, watching with arms folded, trying not to look too amused.

Jaymes would snicker if he wasn't concentrating on not, you know, letting the poor girl fall to the ground. "Alright, now grab that plank and then get your feet situated. You're going to use your legs to get you up over the top. Push up." Which just means that someone should be on the other side to make sure Kyriatis doesn't keel up and over like a sack of tubers. "I'm spotting you and you're not going to fall." A beat, "Unless you do something stupid." Which is probably why Rocio was yelling at someone else just a few minutes ago.

"Charming," smirks Kyriatis, her words muffled by the wall she's scaling. Still, she's attentive to the other candidate's instructions, and if her movements are far from seamless, she's at least clearly making an effort. It's clear that her legs are stronger than her arms, though, and that's to her benefit past the first stage: she pushes, and up she goes. There's a wobble, and then a second, but, at least: "Hah!" She's at the top, at least.

Oh, D'har is watching! He's a in a spot that should let him dart to either side of the wall…though whether he'd be able to successfully break a fall is debatable. He thinks he'd make it. Possibly something else for Rocio to holler at him for. Once Kyriatis is at the top however, he switches to the descent side with a grin. "That's the way!" he encourages, giving Jaymes a nod as he moves around closer to the balance beams. Now to make sure the coming down part goes reasonably smooth.

Inside, Jaymes is hoping to Faranth that D'har is on the other side of the wall. Or close enough in this case! The former Herder is fast, but not that fast to sprint around the corner and catch Kyriatis if she slips. "Alright, good!" He takes a step back to see how she's doing up there. "Now work on your balance. Steady yourself. And take in the view." That last bit is said with a half grin since this is probably the 'tallest' she's ever been. Arms fold across his broad chest as he continues to peer up at the fellow candidate, considering. "When you're ready we'll help you down."

Balance is… actually, not all that much of a problem. Kyriatis holds out both arms, using them to steady herself, but seems almost comfortable in the motion of it. "It's like being atop a dragon," she calls down, swivelling her head enough to pick Jaymes out below— and then D'har, too, on a further sweep of the area. "Sort of. But the view! I can see practically forever."

D'har chuckles at the comparison Kyriatis makes from her perch. "If only it moved. Better views may yet be yours!" he notes, and then sweeps his arm down toward the rest of the course. "I hope neither of you are content with that view, however." The rest of the Candidate group being well along the beams at this point, of course.

"Yeah, I s'pose that's true." Jaymes considers the height of the wall in comparison to scaling a dragon's straps. Up where Kyriatis is perched would be the neckridges and the distance, for him at least, doesn't seem entirely daunting. For someone smaller, they might have a different opinion. "With a dragon, they can offer you a leg up if you need help." Literally, a leg up. He's seen a few dragonriders use their lifemate's foreleg for a little help climbing upward. "Amani makes a daily pilgrimage to get to Zymuraith's neckridges. So, imagine that…" He then notes D'har's nudging toward the balance beams and Jaymes knocks on the wooden plank with his knuckles. "You ready?" To Kyriatis, that.

"Glad that's not something I need to consider a possibility," says Kyriatis of Zymuraith, though it's clear there's some thoughtful imagining going on behind those dark eyes: Impression, as a prospect, looms increasingly large. (So too, no doubt, does not Impressing). "All right, all right, I'm coming down. How… do I come down?" This is daunting all over again; the candidate's uneasy glance is given first to Jaymes, then to D'har.

"Indeed, and our Weyrwomen are not all that tall, either," D'har agrees with Jaymes as he comes closer to the wall. "Come around to the rope again, Kyriatis," he says, smacking his palm below where it hangs. "Down is easier than up, I assure you." He'll back up again then…but not too far.

Once Kyriatis begins the descent down the ropes, Jaymes makes his way to the other side where D'har is already helping. He's not that far away should he need to lunge forward to help catch — but, for now, the candidate quietly observes so he doesn't break her concentration. Again. Heh. "Much easier. You can use your feet against the wall to help yourself down. So, grip the rope and 'walk' the wall." Thankfully, there isn't a huge amount of upper body strength for this part of the exercise. Just the increased potential for some serious rope burn!

It's getting into position to climb down that's the tricky part for Kyriatis, but she gives an uncertain nod of confirmation to her two guides and carefully - carefully! - moves into position. Once she's started, of course, it's much easier, aside from the, "Ow, ow, ow," that accompanies her hands on the ropes, all the way down. Still, as her feet meet the ground again, the look on her face is one of pure triumph: she did it! "Thanks," she says, genuine and unhesitating: credit where credit is due.

With both Candidate on the other side of the nefarious wall, D'har can now go back to his easy observation of the rest of the course. Except he doesn't - not completely. If Kyriatis has rope-burn and is quite so friendly with walls, there are still a few places she may need some help. "Onward you go!" he encourages them both, and casually hops up on an empty beam himself to watch.

Jaymes looks pleased as punch when Kyriatis lands on her feet and gives a nod. "You're welcome. Now let's see how you do on the next challenge…" And so he's off! Toward the balance beam that's calling his name, that is. Meanwhile, everyone and their mother can hear the Weyrlingmaster cheering for Kyriatis from across the course. She saw that from way over yonder!

Kyriatis wins! True, she's holding her hands out in front of her a little gingerly, but she doesn't need them for the balance beam— and she's clearly more comfortable on that than the wall. She's a fair ways behind Jaymes, but it's not a race, right? One foot in front of the other, casually graceful; this is something she's confident with. (Despite the unhappy glance she gives to her hands, though, and the wince as she accidentally clenches one fist: "Ow.")

D'har follows along mostly beside Kyriatis on his own beams. The bluerider doesn't make it look effortless, exactly; his boots are rather stiff-soled. Even so, he moves with a confident stride to the end and hops off. "You're going to need your hands considerably for the next few parts," he warns, having noted that wince. "Can you continue, or do you need to see a Healer?"

Kyriatis lands with both foot, comfortably stable, and turns, glancing in D'har's direction, and then down at her hands. "How considerably?" she wonders. "Because I hate to give up now and have to do it all again. It's not so bad." There's a hint of uncertainty in her voice, but also some determination - and the latter is backed in the way she straightens her shoulders, expression set sharply.

"More ropes, and a curved wall to jump and grab before that," D'har replies, drawing closer and holding out his own hands. "May I see?" he asks, flexing his fingers in punctuation. "You do have to consider how it might affect your other duties as well. And sewing your robe. Things like that." Ebony eyes flicker down the remaining length of the course. "And I highly doubt the Weyrlingmaster will suddenly tear this down." It being Rocio's baby and all. "You'll have other chances. And you'll run it faster now that you know how that wall works, I'm sure."

"I sewed my robe last time," is excuse for one of the items on D'har's list, but not the rest. Reluctantly, Kyriatis sticks out her hands: they're red and raw with the rope burn, and while it's not terrible, it's also unlikely to serve her well for the rest of the course. "I guess. I just… I don't want to be last. It's hard enough being one of the shortest." And one of the youngest. And someone already on their second candidacy.

Dark brows lift in comprehension when Kyriatis mentions already have a robe finished. D'har is gentle and brief in inspecting her hands, his lips pressing thinner in an unpromising manner before the Candidate finishes speaking. "It never feels good to be last. But it feels even worse to be unable to try again at all, wouldn't you agree?" he asks. "Stubbornness can be both a gift and an undoing. You will have your chance, Kyriatis. But only if you don't injure yourself further. I believe you'll be needing a bit of redwort and numbweed, plus a few days of no climbing. If you like, however, you can still finish the course with the substitute exercises." Sit-ups, jump squats, lunges, none of which look fun…but there are some Candidates opting for them.

Kyriatis' jaw sets, mulishly, and though she gives an unhappy nod to confirm that she accepts the rider's conclusion, it doesn't get released. Indeed, at mention of those substitutive exercises, her shoulders draw back sharply. "No," she says. "No, I'll complete it properly, or not at all."

D'har gives a little tilt of his head at Kyriatis' assertion, though a corner of his mouth ticks upward at the same time. "I wouldn't mention to them that sweating through all of that," he says, gesturing to the Candidates engaged in the sub-in trials, "isn't 'proper.' In any case, you'll have to do what you intend once you're healed. Come, I'll take you to the Weyrlingmaster and we'll get you seen to.:

Kyriatis makes a little dismissive noise at the efforts of those particular members of her cohort, quite as if those substitutions would prove no difficulty to her whatsoever (which may be an exaggeration). But she nods, hands dropping loosely to her sides as she falls into step alongside the D'har. "Just wait," she says. "In a few days, I'll be back and I'll get it done perfectly." If her voice is raised just slightly, loud enough to be overheard, well, can a person be blamed for having just a little bit of an admiring crush on a certain greenriding weyrlingmaster?

Though tempted, D'har doesn't let the comment that leaps to his tongue slip free. There's quite an overflow of teenage bravado in this lot! Not that he's had any experience with bravado in all his cocky, Blooded life, of course. "I'm certain you will," is what he'll agree as he takes Kyriatis to see Rocio, and from there, likely to the infirmary to make sure that she does, in fact, recover to satisfaction in those few days.

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