All references to worlds and characters based on Anne McCaffrey's fiction are copyright © Anne McCaffrey 1967,2000, all rights reserved, and used by permission of the author. The Dragonriders of Pern(r) is registered U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, by Anne McCaffrey, used here with permission. Use or reproduction without a license is strictly prohibited. For more information, visit the Worlds of Anne McCaffrey.

05-05-01: Search!
B'roughs emerges from the main hall. B'roughs wanders in a scowl on his face. He /used/ to know his way...

B'roughs emerges from the main hall.

B'roughs wanders in a scowl on his face. He /used/ to know his way around here, alot better than he does now! He scans the dinning room and frowns. Not too many people here for once, and he makes his way towards the first person to catch his eye.

Hanneke resides at one of the smaller of the apprentice tables--her head burrowed towards a pile of hides that are given a decisive wrinkle of her nose as she works, or perhaps tries to work. An untouched glass of juice resides beside her, reached for as footsteps are heard, and her hand ducks back again. "Master, I--" She pauses. "Oh!"

B'roughs chuckles. "No, not a master, don't you worry, just a lost rider looking for a hand? I'm looking for a friend of a friend. You wouldn't happen to know Healer Saldia would you?" He's /very/ loost indeed!

Hanneke's vacuous expression nonetheless gains relief, as the harper apprentice straightens, hastily perfecting her pose--hands folded in front of her, posture perfect, expression dull. "Healer Saldia? No, sir, but the Healer Hall is just here, so she can't bee too far off, I shouldn't think. I don't know, though, since I don't know much about healers or anything at all." Abruptly, the babbing halts, and she blushes. "Oh! Harper's duties to your Weyr, though, sir."

B'roughs chuckles. "Not, sir, just call me B'roughs. Or b'r for short. Rider of blue Inigoth if you insist on being formal." He teases gently. "Now, I started out in Healer and I ended up in harper then here? It's been something like 10 turns since I was down this way for any length of time... could you show me the most likely place to find her?"

With a true measure of composure, Hanneke dips her head into a graceful nod, responding, "B'roughs, then. I'm Hanneke, and I'm an Apprentice Harper." She giggles softly, blank expression broadened by a brilliant smile that seems almost engendered into her facial expression. "I could try! I'm not so good at navigating, though. I get lost."

B'roughs chuckles. "Not half so lost as I am... or would you rather go ask Inigoth /his/ opinion? I'm sure he could give you an earfull of advice... Not sure how good it'd all be..."

Hanneke rises gracefully from her seat, giving her hides and juice a blank stare, before turning, set upon leaving the clutter behind. Blank smiles respond to B'roughs' statement, and she giggles. Her intelligence level is fascinatingly high. "I suppose we could, but I don't suppose it'd help us find your healer-person."

B'roughs nods. "True, but it might give us an idea where to start. Besides he's wondering who's keeping me so long in one spot." Ooo, grouchy blue! at least today. "I think he wants to meet you."

Hanneke raises one finely cultured eyebrow, giggling brightly with high pitched resonance. "Oh! I suppose so. If you want!" She beams, attempting at a convincingly knowledgeable expression.

B'roughs quirks an eyebrow, but he's not looking for knowledgable. Just in a mood to humor his dragon today. "This way." He motions her out with a smile and a wink.

Hanneke follows, at a skip. Boundless energy resonates each movement.

[Scene change: Courtyard]

Hanneke emerges from the Harper Building at a skip, bounding through into the courtyard until she arrives at a wavering halt, smoothing her clothing down. All ten digits then move to smooth over her elaborate hairstyle, an expression of thoughtfulness crossing her face as she does so--"Hi!" She notes of Inigoth; "You must be--er, I've forgotten. His," she indicates B'roughs, "dragon." Er, yes.

Inigoth rumbles as B'roughs emerges from the hall. "No, we did /not/ find Saldia... you wanted to see who was slowing me down, so i brought her. Inigoth, this is Hanneke... Hanneke, inigoth." The blue pokes his tail out at her, as if testing her reality...

Hanneke looks positively penitent for a moment, balancing upon one foot as she greets properly, "Hullo, Inigoth! I'm Hanneke!" Regardless of whether this had already been said. His tail is given a quick glance, and her fingers move back towards her hair, protectively.

Scinhia emerges from the healers' courtyard, under the western arch.

Scinhia comes storming through. Not a like a thunderstorm, but maybe like an ambitious rainshower.

Scinhia passes through the northwest door into the instrument workshop.

Inigoth turns to B'r and rumbles and this time he pokes at the girl with his nose. "Yes, Inigoth, she is polite... and cheerful." The tail sneaks out to poke at her ankle. Watch out, she's close to being surounded by blue. The B'r's eyes go harder. "NO! you will /not/ stuff her and make a pet out of her..."

Hanneke is not above letting out a small yelp, and blinking madly as first nose, and then tail make close contact with her personage. "Nonono! Don't let him do that. I don't want to be a pet!"

Scinhia emerges from the instrument workshop.

Scinhia passes through once more, this time with a little less irritation.

Scinhia follows the stone ramp into the Hall proper.

B'roughs shakes his head. "I won't. I promise. No pets out of people. At least not Ista..." But inigoth nudges B'r with a wing and B'r glares at him. "You just don't give up do you?" then back to Hanneke. "He's bound and determined... He would like to know if you would like to stand for Tijiath's latest clutch? Seems to think that'll give you time to reconsider thestuffed thing."

Hanneke's expression hardly changes, although her posture seems to gain a slight bit of comfort, relief perhaps notable within her stance. "Sir? I mean--B'roughs? I mean--Sir, Mother says that that only happens in ballads, and not to people like me."

B'roughs chuckles. "Last time I checked I wasn't a balad... Comedy maybe, ballad no." His smile is gentle. "Did you think we grew candidates in some field? We get them from everywhere, hold, hall, and our own lower caverns. The offer still stands."

Hanneke flushes furiously, the colour making a striking contrast to her tawny hair. "Oh, I'm sorry, sir." Persisting at the title, she adds, "But I don't know what to say, sir! No one ever told me."

Leo materializes suddenly in the room as he blinks in from ::between:: Scanning the room, he spies a perch and settles upon it.

B'roughs nods and eases up a little. "don't worry. It's very simple just say "Yes" if you would like to stand, or "No" if you'd rather stay here"

Hanneke's expression indicates that perhaps that's not a lot of help. "Er, right. Um." She glances frantically around the courtyard--as if attempting to find inspiration. "Er, okay. Um." Eventually, she simply blabs out the first word that comes to mind: "Yes!"

B'roughs grins and swings up onto Inigoth's lowered neck and leans down for Hanneke's hand. Inigoth offers a paw. "Take my hand and climb on up." close enough to an order, though his tone is still polite.

Hanneke draws her head into a nod, giving the blue dragon a hesitant nod before she lets her hand grasp about B'roughs', and makes a good attempt at climbing atop Inigoth.

You clamber up Inigoth's neck and set yourself between two neckridges.

Inigoth

A ripple of deepest ocean blue surouds you, and if it weren't for the warmth of the dragon hide, you'd swear you were astride an ocean wave.

B'roughs swings up to Inigoth's neck, settling between two neckridges, and smiles down to his lifemate.

B'roughs chuckles as he pulls her up, nodding approval. "Ok, now hold on tight!" He says to her as he straps her in, full fighting straps. "He likes to do acrobatics."

Hanneke nods rapidly, her face all but split by her brilliantly beaming smile. "I will!" she calls, grasping on with both hands.

Inigoth is being nice today as he takes off, he doesn't barrel roll 2 winglengths off the ground.

Cupping your wings, you launch up! up! and away! from the cramped courtyard and into the wide, open skies.

Hanneke shuts her eyes, although a giggle escapes nonetheless--"Wheee!" Oh dear.

B'roughs laughs. "Hold on! we're going ::Between:: It's going to be cold." too late to do anything now.

Inigoth winks into ::between::!

:::BETWEEN!:::

You hang, senseless, in the dark nothingness of ::between::... absolute darkness surrounds you, and the profound cold stings you... you wait, and count...

Black...

Blacker...

Blackest...

Inigoth blinks in from ::between::!

A peel of laughter emerges from Hanneke as they emerge from Between--no fears, here.

Hanneke snugs Allowy! Allowy enjoys that most precious of hugs, the super hug (snug). In thanks for such a joyous event, she returns the favor with a swirl of arms and squeezing embrace. Mmmmm.

B'roughs grins and looks back over his shoulder. "Glad you enjoyed that! It scares most people silly the first time!" And inigoth wheels off to the left, this time indulging in a barrel roll.

You drop down towards the busy caverns.

Hanneke's laughter continues--a loud, soprano noise escaping from the not so large apprentice turned candidate. "Ooh, I've been before," she explains, giggling. "But this is more fun."

On the Eastern Bowl floor, below, T'paz effortlessly leaps up onto Jaspyth's neck, and checks on Karei. "He didn't mean to startle you, really. He just said to me that any new person that I meet, he would like to keep on as helpers for when he needs a bath. He never remembers how every firelizard from miles around always show up and help him out there. Don't worry. He's being...sociable, I guess you could call it. You want down?" he inquires.

B'roughs nods. "indeed, better than being a messanger too!" what was what /he'd/ done before Inigoth. "Come one. time to go and get you settled in..." and He signals inigoth down.

You spiral down to the ground.

Hanneke nods rapidly, beaming brilliantly as she attempts to unbuckle herself, having minor difficulties, and finally makes it free, and moves towards the ground. "Yes! Okay!"

You slide gently down Inigoth's neck and land with a soft thud.

Madden hears B'roughs' former occupation and laughs. "What's wrong with being a messenger?" he asks incredulously. "You get to travel all over, meet new people..." he shrugs. "Good life!"

Karei huffs quietly, releasing her grip on Jaspyth's neckridge slowly. "It's.. okay. It just startled me." Twitch, twitch goes the huntress-wannabe, who peers nervously towards T'paz again. "He can't /keep/ me -- I live at Fort. He can be sociable, but I'm not keepable." Sagenod. "And if you could get me down -- I'd be much obliged. My stomach's doing flip-flops from the trip up." Erk.

Chandelle smiles "I did that once" she says holding onto the dragon claw.

From Inigoth's neck, B'roughs slids off Inigoth's neck and then turns back to Hanneke. Offering her a hand to help her down. "Come on, we'll get you set up now. Cot in the Candidate barracks. NOt exactly fancy, but then again, I don't think apprentice dorms are fancy either..."

B'roughs swings down from his lifemate Inigoth's neck.

"No," agrees Hanneke, safely upon the ground. "They're not." Her nose wrinkles, indicating that it's not an entirely pleasing idea, but her smile remains as broad as ever. "Hullo!" She calls, towards those in the bowl, regardless of whether they're in hearing range or not--it's social, it's polite, see.

Madden turns to Hannkeke and grins. "What're you doing here?" he asks, genuine pleasure at seeing her colouring his tone.

B'roughs chuckles at Madden. "She's a candidate, and I'm carting her off to the barracks to get her settled in... and messangering isn't so bad /if/ you can ride a runner before hand." Sore posterior was one of his major complaints. "Now I'll be back in a bit... let her get settled in."

Jaspyth releases Chandelle, then crooks the same, trapping forelimb, to provide a step for his rider and startled passenger. T'paz slides down with the ease of uncounted hours of practice. He stands on the bent limb, and holds up both hands to help Karei off. They both land on the ground safely, and T'paz releases her. "There you go...and I.." He stops mid sentence, eyes going all distant again, for a bit longer this time. "Uh, Karei, got a question for ya..."

Madden grins. "Candidate eh Hanneke? Congratulations! Good luck!"

Hanneke simply beams towards Madden, bouncing as she moves to follow B'roughs--"Oh, isn't it *wonderful*! Thank you!"

Jaspyth's eyes turn blue/green, and begin to swirl a wee bit faster.

Karei would kiss the ground if she were brave enough to risk the dirt; for fear of it, she simply stamps a foot, beaming gratefully up at T'paz and managing a congratulatory greeting for Hanneke -- then it's back to T'paz, who recieves the tilt of a head and an eyebrow-quirk as Karei peers warily up at him. "Sure; go ahead."

B'roughs goes into to the Living Caverns.

You go into the Living Caverns.

B'roughs smiles. "Through here..." He points to the lower caverns. "the kitchen's over there, you will probably be seeing it alot... Tuber duty is a common one."

B'roughs disappears beneath the arched entrance to the Living Quarters.

You head into the Living Quarters.

Hanneke wrinkles her nose at mention of tuber duty, not to mention the very mention of the kitchens, but follows obediently. "Yes sir, okay."

B'roughs casts a glance back over his shoulder. "don't worry, it's worth it on hatching day... or was for me..." He motions her towards the candidate's barracks, second door on the left!

B'roughs leaves for the Candidate's Barracks.

Zureile turns to the door as it swings open.... and finds herself staring into a familiar pair of eyes. "Hanneke? What are you doing here?" Not exactly the brightest of questions. "You got searched, too?" Zureile is on a roll tonight, folks. Grin spreading across her face, relief seems to pour through her body at sight of her old friend... well, maybe her old friend. As Zureile remembers it, they didn't exactly part on the best of terms last time. Eyebrows furrowing she rises to her feet as she asks worriedly, "You're not still mad at me, are you? Because we're going to be together quite a lot, you and I, and it won't do if we're mad at each other all the time. Besides, we both got searched, so that's got to mean something!" What it means exactly, Zureile's not sure of. But it seems appropriate at the moment.

Dalas sits on his cot feeding his fair of firelizards,"I know this isn't home but for a little while it has to be home, you guys know the drill....don't give me that attitude Oscar....Nightshade its not going to be forever so you don't have to act that way."Scolding and crooning to his fair of firelizards getting them to understand whats going on and why he has been moved."If you don't like it you can go and stay in the office with Stormie but you know how she is about you guys hanging around where she likes to sleep." He tells them, then looks up as another candidate comes into the barracks.

B'roughs ushers Hanneke in and blinks at Zureile. "Yes, she got searched, I take it you did as well?" Back over his shoulder, he points to a random cot. "Settle in, you'll be here for a while...."

"Reile!" Hanneke is not going to get used to the boy being a girl any time soon--but at least she isn't angry and/or upset. Bouncing in after B'roughs, she grins, "I did, I did! Mother says that people only get searched in ballads, but it's not true after all. I guess she made a mistake." The newest candidate moves directly towards the cot in question, nodding rapidly. "Yessir!"

Hanneke hugs Karei! Karei tosses a dragonpoker card at you -- it's a.. two. Karei walks away.

Oscar gets one of Lucca's peices of fish and when Lucca tries to get it back he hisses him down, making Nightshade have to get the fish back for Lucca who is like a greatful child. "Oscar you really need to stop that, just cause your a bronze is no reason to act that way towards Luccascious."Shaking his head at the firelizard and seeing the new girl smiles, "You were at the clutching weren't you?" He remembers the excited apprentice, or was it journeyman, well least he knows it was a harper,"So did you learn enough to keep us entertained?"

Hanneke nods rapidly in Dalas' direction; "I was, I was! And now I'm here. Er--" she pauses, then nods quickly. "I did! I have!" But it's better to get a second opinion on that much.

Dalas says,"As long as we have someone who can play and sing then we shouldn't get too bored around here,"He is definately lucky to be assigned to the infirmary, he can remember being searched before and what the chores entail,"I hope none of you get latrine duty any time soon." He comments as he finishes feeding his fair, without a crumb of anything dropped on his cot.

T'paz enters the Barracks, bring Karei in on his arm. "B'roughs. Good to see ya, man. Ladies and gentlemen, I present your latest Candidate, Karei!" He releases the Fortian to find her way.

B'roughs wrinkles his noes. "that was the one they stuck me with..." He leans up against a wall and just watches.

Zureile looks up at the arrival of yet another candidate, shaking her head at ruefully at the thought of being subjected to Hanneke's idea of entertainment throughout the eggs' hardening.

Karei flounders for a moment as she's left without a T'paz arm, managing a dim smile as she peers around the barracks nervously. "Uh.. hi." Squawk. "Yeah. I'm Karei." Blinkblink. She'll just stand and make an idiot of herself for a moment. Riight. Give her a moment or two (or a thousand?) to adjust. Hack.

Dalas says,"Well don't just stand there Zureile, help the two newcommers find a vacant cot, they would fall under your care being as how they are girls don't you think?" He asks his fellow candidate, "I mean I would help them but I'm not suppose to be on that side of the room as it were."

From her sprawled position on her bunk, Zureile suddenly feels much less intimidated as she looks at Karei's expression. At least she wasn't the only one who felt like her world had been turned upside down. She starts at Dalas' statement, then grimaces slightly. Help them with what? "Uh, Hanneke, and.. Karei, was it? Umm.. choose a cot, and uh, take one on this side because the other side's the boys'." Exauhsting her supply of meager information, she darts a desperate look at the dragonriders for help.

Karei nods, peering wistfully at the male end of the room -- poor, deprived Karei -- before plopping herself down on an empty cot on the female side. "Karei, that's right. Fort -- er." Blink. "Nevermind."

Dalas kicks his boots off and lays back on his cot,"Is there going to be a partition blocking off the view...er so that the girls won't have to undress in front of the guys, me being a healer and all I'm kind of use to it, but you know how young boys can be."Looking towards the riders to see what they know of the subject.

B'roughs enumerates the most common chores. "Peeling tubers. Scrubing... everything. Mucking the stables. Cleaning up the Feeding grounds. Weeding the bowl. and of course... Latrine duties. Also, mending, sewing, nursry duty..." anything the average drudge woudl do...

Hanneke has been all but silent--savor such a rare occurance--but now she nods, wrinkling her nose. "My *hands*." She who has escaped kitchen chores looks aghast.

T'paz nods to B'roughs, then makes his way out, back to the LC...

T'paz exits the barracks, feeling round, square, spiky, smooth, or bristled -- or everything all at once. Or nothing at all. How would I know? I am only a door. Go ask /them/.

"Latrine duties?" Zureile bursts out indignantly. Maybe it /would/ have been better to let Cala drag her off back to Moira. Well, /maybe/. But still, "Are you sure?" she asks doubtfully. "I mean... Latrine duties?" Zureile's beginning to sound like a broken record, if they had such a thing Pern.

Karei flutters her eyelashes at Zureile. "Maybe we'll get lucky, and it'll be all the boys who get that one? Just so long as I don't get stuck with /nursery duty./" Bleargh. Small children.

Dalas smiles at his fellow candidate,"Yep latrine duty and think of it this way, the weyr isn't sexist on its assignements either, girls and guys can both do the /same/ duties." Or should he say Doodies.

B'roughs nods. "And it can varry from day to day... though I got stuck on Latrine duty the whole time... I guess they liked the way I cleaned them..." He snorts. "though a couple of the girls got stable duty and Field duty..."

Dalas says,"Who are the weyrling masters?" Couldn't hurt to ask, who knows one of them may become a weyrling when its all said and done.

B'roughs shrugs. "Right now still Fiora, but there are rumors running around that they're looking for a replacement... Nothing is official. Besides you've got at least 3 months before you have to worry about that..."

Zureile droops visibly at the thought of doing chores again. But determined not to let that ruin her day, she tries another tactic. "But what do we do the rest of the day? I mean, our chores can't take /that/ long, can they? And what about the partitions? Where are we going to change?" Not that Zureile has anything to change into, but she'd still like to know.

Dalas chuckles at what Zureile has to say, but he does offer this,"When your work is done you may have time to eat, and get a nap, maybe even go up to the gallery for an egg peek but then its time for your evening chores that almost always take you right back to bed until the next morning.Right B'roughs?" He looks toward the rider to see if he remembered correctly.

Karei woos. Chores, baby, chores -- something to keep Karei busy. And that's always good. But then: "... three /months/ of.. chores?" Three straight months, no breaks -- le sob. "No.. no more dragonpoker?" Sniff.

B'roughs nods. "Though somehow or other someone finds a way of getting into trouble, too, so They have to find the time /somewhere/." His expression is so bland, that he /had/ to have been one of those.

Zureile drops her jaw, gaping. Chores /all day/? "But that's not fair," she bursts out. She doesn't want to be the trouble maker, but /really/. "Who does these chores when there aren't candidates? Why do we have to do them?" Zureile's lower lip is beginning to droop, and her voice is taking on the tones of a spoiled child. Not really certain how to react to the events of the day, she's doing the first thing that comes to mind: complaining.

Hanneke moves her hands to her hair, pressing and prodding at the elaborate coiffe with some confidence--"They're just *chores* Zureile. Easily avoided." She smiles winningly, face turned towards the rest of the candidates. "It won't be so bad--isn't this exciting!"

Dalas says,"Don't you think the drudges would like a little break once and awhile, I mean when there are candidates some folk who work very hard get to go fishing for a little while, they have always cleaned up after us and will have to again when we become;..or if we become riders."Looking at Zureile.

Karei's dazed expression shifts rather quickly into an irritable one, widened eyes narrowing once more. "Eh -- ignoring chores is.. bad." Even Karei'd have to feel guilty. "We're supposed to be.. getting ready for weyrlinghood, or something, anyway." Mumble.

B'roughs shrugs. "Drudges or riders in trouble." He turns on Hanneke. "Shirking is extremely frowned on. If you impress you will /not/ be able to shirk the chores that come with all that." He eyes the group and nods to Dalas. "And with 3 queens, there are frequently candidates to help out..." Drudges iwth a fancy knot...

Hanneke flushes furiously, although her head doesn't so much as duck. "Sorry!" she chirps, all cheery and helpful, as innocent as you please.

Zureile shrugs, a little placated. But the idea of three months of solid chores was a little different than the perfectly timed vacation that seemed to present itself earlier. "But what about the curtains? I mean, where do we dress? And do we get to go visit our families?" Please-no please-no.. Zureile has not desire to be shipped home to face her father and step-mother, and would like to postpone their arrival as long as she can.

Dalas with a yawn says,"You shouldn't go too far from...the ...weyr.."Another yawn as he lays down on the cot, his firelizards settling down around him actually seeming to tuck him in with their pawing of the sleeping furs,"I...mean...*yawn*...you don't want....to ...be ...too far...away ...when the ....eggs....hatch." And with that he falls instantly asleep. Oscar stands guard over his sleeping form watching his eyes whirling.

B'roughs stifles a yawn himself. "I should get going. I have sweeps tomorrow and I have to arange a flight practice for Griffin wing..."