Who

Ginger, Evka, K'rev, Unnamed NPC

What

It's a lunchtime gathering

Talk of Death

When

-- On Pern --
It is 3:22 PM where you are.
It is afternoon of the twenty-second day of the first month of the seventeenth turn of the 12th pass.
In Igen:
It is the eighty-second day of Winter and 32 degrees. It is a bright, sunny day.
In Southern:
It is the eighty-second day of Summer and 115 degrees. It is sunny and bright. White fluffy clouds drift lazily across the china blue sky.
In Southern Mountains:
It is the eighty-second day of Summer and 32 degrees. It's really damn cold out.


Where

Living Caverns, Southern Weyr

OOC Date 20 May 2019 06:00

 

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"Hey, K'rev, what did you do to get people bringing you vegetables?"


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Living Caverns

Grand and spacious, the cavern curves high aloft in a naturally-vaulted ceiling that soothes any sense of claustrophobia. Rich woods line the cavern floor, varnished and stained a rich mahogany, while round tables scatter about, candlelit and intimate. The largest table lies southerly next to the sideboard, long trestles that seem oriented to providing for the Weyr's youngest. The rich blue of the Azov can be seen from a distance in good weather, when the heavy stone doors covering the entrance are allowed to stand open.



Weyr life is such that there are always those who need an early meal or a late one. Fortunately it's still more or less lunchtime time when Ginger arrives, hurrying a little after whatever delayed her. There's even still some food available without having recourse to the nighthearth, though the choice is not great, and there's plenty of space as most people are long gone. Ginger helps herself to stew and bread - yes, they're serving hot spicy stew, when it's 115 degrees outside - and tops it with the remains of a plate of salad leaves, though there's little enough left that it counts more as garnish than eating her veggies. She adds a large beaker of not quite cold water to her tray, then finds herself an empty table, sits down, and tries her main course with a tentative fork.

Evka happens to be about a table over from where Ginger plops herself down for her late lunch. The Southern Weyrsecond was lucky enough to sneak into lunch when there was still sandwhiches to be had. The crumbs of her own litter a plate now occupied by a bubbly pie that remains untouched as of yet. She's mulling over flightcharts and some hidework that she really should have got done earlier, but she'd been slightly distracted this morning by her thoughts and worries. Now, she's clear headed and can think. Ginger's arrival is noted and when the woman has her seat, Evka waves a greeting to her and sips her klah.

K'rev is sitting at another table, though it's mostly vacant now. He's speared another slice of roast onto his knife and dropped it on his plate. He chops it up but it's already tender, which is nice, because when they're too old, they tend to get stringy, which doesn't make for a very good dining experience. He begins to eat when one of the residents, a dark-haired young girl places some greens on his plate. He snickers slightly, and places them in the middle of the roast and continues eating.

Ginger waves back to Evka. "Afternoon, weyrsecond." A bit formal? There's a weyrling within earshot, after all. She adds, "How's it going, Ev?" before taking a mouthful of her stew - and then grabs desperately for her water. After a long swallow and some mouth breathing, she's capable of speech again. "No wonder there was plenty of this left: it's practically scorching. Hey, K'rev, what did you do to get people bringing you vegetables?"

Evka grins. "Good afternoon Ginger. It's going about as well as it ever does. Same dung, different day." SHe chuckles and sips at her klah again, her gaze wandering over to K'rev as Ginger speaks again. "Aye, I'd love some tableside service too… Spill your secrets Weyrling!" She's totally joking around, but seriously, how do? She begiuns picking at that bubbly pie whilst she waits K'rev's answer.

Glancing back and forth between Ginger and Evka he explains, "I dunno, she just… well, you'd think she's a healer, or wants to be the way she's at me and the others at times. She says I don't eat enough tubers and vegetables." The girl, apparently aware that she's the subject of conversation flushes furiously, and tucks into her food with a vengeance, hiding her face as much as possible.

Ginger winks at the girl. "Good thinking: he needs his veg to keep up with all those drills we give him. But don't run around after him: make him get his own next time." Then she leaves the poor girl in peace. "Not much longer now, K'rev, and you'll be joining a fighting wing. Looking forward to it, you and Mnaranth?" She's conveniently provided a pair of names for Evka's benefit, should the Weyrsecond require them, and adds in a sympathetic tone to Evka, "You look like you're up to your neck in hidework. We should grab Katrya and Talya and go and do something relaxing, sometime. Maybe when the weyrlings are through training. And before the next lot."

Evka can only sit and giggle a bit as Ginger teases K'rev and his poor tablemate. She sends the girl a wink and backs up Ginger's claims. "Aye, if you don't make him do it now, he never will." She says of getting his own veggies, but it's an obvious tease and Evka goes back to sipping her drink. "Have you been approached by anyone yet K'rev?" She asks after Ginger so awesomely provides her with a name. As for the AWLM's suggestion of something fun, well, Evka nods enthusiastically and sits up in her chair. "There's always a mountain of this, no matter what I do." She waves at the hide stack. "I'm starting to wonder if I might not need an assistant at times… But yes, a ni ght out away from all….this, would be nice. Count me in."

"We are excited", he says to Ginger. The 'we', obviously meaning his dragon, Mnaranth. He turns ever so slightly and looks at Evka. "I haven't been approached just yet", he says, about to eat his last slice. As he puts his knife down to the right of his plate, the girl touches his hand lightly. That almost looked like an accident, but the flush creeping up her face, and the flare of her nostrils might mean it was contrived. Either way, K'rev glances at her, but doesn't seem to notice anything as he goes back to eating. She jumps up from the table with her empty plate, turns and heads for the kitchen. An observant person might notice the one lone tear streaming down her right eye and landing on her cheek.

Ginger watches the girl go, and murmurs "Oh dear." Then she continues to pick cautiously at her food, which has the effect of turning her face rather red and adding a faint sheen of perspiration to her complexion. But she's not one to be easily deterred by a bit of spice - or, let's be honest, far too much spice - and ploughs on to the point where her eyes are watering before she suggests to Evka, "Maybe our new weyrleader will decide to have two 'seconds. I know it's not been done much lately, but there's no reason why he shouldn't. Then you can dump half of it on someone else." K'rev's given a nod. "I've noticed quite a few wingleaders keeping an eye on you all, though. They usually like to eye up the talent and ask for the people they want. Even saw Weyrleader M'kel round the training grounds yesterday, watching a drill."

Evka chuckles. "Oh I wish…" From what she's heard, that seems unlikely though. "But if this one hires another wingsecond, I'll likely be buried in this, if what I'm hearing lately is correct." She watches the girl leave, a pang of sympathy welling up for her. She's been there before… Part of her wants to go after the girl, but it's best she keeps her nose out of business that isn't hers. "Aye, Ginger's got the right of it there, we've been watching you all for sevens now, trying to decide who to doo—- tap into our wings."

With the last of his meal down the hatch, K'rev nods enthusiastically. "Mnaranth and I have been working hard, I think we're about ready." He puts his hands up on the table and sort of fidgets nervously.

"Ready? I'm not sure anyone's ever ready!" Ginger's grinning, but she goes on more seriously, "It's a big jump from drills to actual Threadfighting. But the only way you're going to learn to fight Thread is by doing it - so don't think you can stop learning now. All we can really do with you as weyrlings is give you enough skill to get started - and have a fair chance of staying alive long enough to learn how to do it. But you do get to a point where you're ready to move on, I guess. The rest's up to you."

Evka can't help but grin along with Ginger. Torturing the Weyrlings has become a particular favorite of Evka's, picking out what makes them nervous or afraid. But it's all in good fun, she swears! She would never actually torture one…though rumor has it that there's a weyrling in this class that might… Evka keeps this to herself however and pretends to examine her nails while Ginger expands on what life for a rider is like post graduation. "Again, she's the right of it there. There's only so much can be done to prepare someone, it's the rigors of thread-battle that tell you if you can actually do it or not. And if you can't, well, likely, you won't live to tell the tale, and if you do, Faranth save you." Evka isn't one to sugarcoat things apparently. "And if you do make it, well, better not get cocky, there's always next time. But you'll do fine." Bright smile after that. See. Maybe she was kidding… Or was she? Someone has a need for real talk this evening.

"Oh, I don't think I'll be great or anything, at least not at first", K'rev puts in. "It's just that we're both excited to get out there and fight thread in a fighting wing."

Of course - that's only natural. Just keep your wits about you, right?" Ginger's apparently had enough lecturing for one lunchtime, and starts on her stew again, but her eyes start streaming and she gives up. "This is ghastly - someone had a heavy hand with the hot spice, I think. I don't like to waste food, but I don't think even the porcines could get much of this down. I'm going to head back to the Training Gound." She starts to get to her feet and gather the crockery for return. "See you around, Ev, and we'll arrange that afternoon out, or whatever." She nods to K'rev and to the weyrsecond, then goes to take her plate back. She does manage to find a lonely pastry on a plate, and sneaks it out to fill a gap later on."

Evka spares another look of sympathy, this time towards Ginger, who is obviously suffering at the hand of her lunch. "See you, do drink some milk, it'll help with the burn!" Trust someone who grew up eating curry to know! To K'rev, Evka gently smiles. "You'll do great out there! What I said was all too true, but most of you get the knack of it pretty quick." Evka looks over and happens to catch the mark on the candle and sighs. "Time for me to go too, meetings and sweeps wait for no one. Have a good afternoon Weyrling, and good luck with graduation!" She beams at the young man and stands, gathering her things before hurrying out the door and leaving that bubbly pie near completely untouched.

Pushing back from the table and getting to his feet, K'rev heads out without another word. He's kind of an odd one.

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