What's eating you? (Eikane)

[Rowana]

The evening meal was almost over. Most of the dragonrider's and staff were heading to their beds, while the wherhandlers and night crew were just getting up. Hoayamae was going to bed soon too. Much as she'd like to stay awake to see that everyone got fed, she was only human. Tonight, however, she was in a foul mood. Kitchen staff and helpers rushed to finish their chores so they could escape to the safety of their rooms. No one knew why Mae was so cranky, but no one dared to ask.

With a huff, Mae stormed into the Main Hall with a heaping tray of rolls for the wherhandlers. Nhim chirped around her shoulders happily, obviously to his owner's glares and scowls. Mae set the tray on a table with a clatter, then sank into a chair with a sigh. Nhim whistled sweetly in her ear, hoping to cheer her up. Nothing was pink, so everyone should be happy!

[Ember]

"Perfect timing as always, Mae. Thanks for all your hard work," Eikane said pleasantly as he approached the table that Mae had set the food down on. "You're a credit to the kitchens." The man set a basket of perfectly folded clothes on the ground next to the table and took a seat across from the cook. One might think he'd just come back from washing the clothes if not for the tell-tale dirt stains on the uppermost clothes. The goldhandler was as fussy as ever. Even his dirty clothes had to be folded just so.

The man glanced at his hands before reaching for a roll and taking it. He'd washed his hands before coming over to the main hall but it was such a habit to check. His eyes flicked to Mae and he looked her over briefly before saying, "How are you Mae? Life's not getting you down, is it?" Despite the fact that she could be very fierce when guarding the kitchens, Eikane didn't find her to be a bad woman. If something was bothering her then he wanted to hear. He was always more than willing to listen to someone else's problems. If he could help then he most likely would.

The goldhandler felt for Eikask's mind and found her still sleeping. Good. She'd be probably be upset with him if she knew he was paying attention to the troubles of a woman. Darn posessive monster. Eikane loved her despite that. Or maybe it was because of that? He couldn't tell sometimes. It was nice to be wanted. He checked on Nocturne next and found the blue was actually in the main hall as well. The goldhandler asked where he was only to feel something crawling up the back of his shirt. Ah. The blue continued to remain unseen to Mae while he climbed his way up into Eikane's hair. It made the goldhandler want to smile out of amusement but he supressed the urge.

[Rowana]

It was hard to stay too grumpy when someone was complimenting one. Hoayamae offered Eikane a half-hearted smile despite herself. She liked this handler. At least he had the decency to be neat and have good manners. It was certainly more than could be said of many of the candidates and weyrlings these days, not to mention the weyrbrats. Nhim offered Eikane a bright greeting. It was so good he was here and being nice! Maybe he could make the grumpiness go away.

"Life's well enough," Mae admitted with a sigh. The kitchen was in order, though she missed her old one sometimes. Meals were served on time usually, baring problems and salamandyr hatchings. Still, these weren't the trouble today. "It's just this," Mae waved a hand at her apron. It wasn't a very fancy affair. Dusty blue, with lopsided red flowers and ties that weren't the same length. It was in surprisingly good repair, but for the large, purple stain in the middle. "One of the drudges dropped a trail of bubbly pies today. Try as I might, I can't get this bloody stain out."

It wouldn't be such a big deal, but her son had made her the apron years ago as a present. Now that he was gone, it was one of the few things she had left of his. She could have kept it in her room, safe and clean, but T'vol had wanted her to use it. It didn't feel right just hiding it away. Now it was probably ruined though and she just couldn't stand it.

[Ember]

Eikane smiled when he noticed Hoayamae's. That was a good first step - not to mention a proper indicator that something really was wrong. With the man's curiosity and generally caring nature aroused he then had no choice but to try and help out. Although, that depended on the other party being willing to tell him what the problem was. His face was as open and waiting as it ever was. He'd always gotten a lot of people to come to him with problems since he almost always listened and, even when judgemental, didn't show it outwardly.

When Mae told him what the problem was his eyes drifted to the stain and he smiled slightly. "Well Mae, your problem has quite an easy solution." If anyone would know how to get a stain out of fabric, it was likely to be Eikane. He was such a neat freak there was no way he wouldn't know any of the simple ways to try and get out a stain. Bubbly pie filling was one of the easier ones, though it might take a bit longer since the stain had been able to set a bit more. Ah well, time to present the solution to Mae's problem.

"I was about to do my laundry as well, before all the wherhandlers get here and get in my way. How about a little trade," he said with a cheeky wink. "I get rid of that stain for you and you let me use the big pots to heat water for my laundry. That river's ice cold right now and I don't really look forward to washing my clothes in it." Even if she said no he'd still be willing to help the kitchen woman. If they could help each other, that would be best in the Whermaster's eyes.

[Rowana]

Hoayamae grinned at Eikane's suggestion. "Yah drive a hard bargain, handler," she teased. "But yah got a deal." Anything was a small price to pay if it got the stain out of her apron. They wouldn't need the large pots again for hours yet, so it wouldn't be a problem. Mae untied the apron and passed it to Eikane. "If yah ruin it, though, you'll more than cold water to worry about!" Mae chuckled, indicating that her threat wasn't serious. Well, not that serious, but he might want to be careful or he would be cleaning more than just clothes in the near future.

[Ember]

Eikane chuckled and did a little bow. He accepted the tease good-humouredly and took the apron carefully, keeping it from touching the food. No need to make it more dirty. He examined the stain for a moment. Well, stains were best treated sooner and it had already been a while. Best get started on it early. He could eat breakfast while the water heated anyways. "Fear not Mae, I'll have this apron looking like new! Newer at least," he added, noticing the well-loved condition of the fabric. He grabbed another roll and put it in his mouth before draping the apron over one elbow and standing up.

He made a vague head gesture towards the kitchens and lifted up his own basket. She could, of course, simply wait in the eating hall but he had a feeling she'd probably get impatient. He made his way to the kitchens with everything in tow. When he got there he set his basket down and folded the apron so that the stain was visible. He looked around for what he needed. Aha, there was one of those big pots. He moved it onto the fires and used a smaller pot to fill it with water. He doubted he could fill it and then move it. At least, not without a lot of work on his part. Besides, the smaller pot would be handy for Mae's problem. He filled it with water and set it over the fires as well. Preparations complete he proceeded to eat his roll.