A Meeting about a Mending (Porita)

[Aftershock]

M'gnum had finished dinner, and was was in his weyr cleaning himself up. Toweling off his hands and face, he reached over to grab a shirt, and buttoned it up only to find a large gash in the material across the left breast. "Damnit," he thought to himself, "I've been so busy training with my team I forgot to get this fixed." The gash, as well as the injury that came with it, had occurred a week before during a weapons training exercise with the team he had been tapped to lead in a future conflict... the Healers had taken care of the cut on his chest, but unfortunately clothing does not lend itself to self-repair as much as the human body. So, the shirt had been washed of blood, but apparently the damage was forgotten about... until now.

Stripping the shirt off, he replaced it with another, buttoning and tucking it in carefully, then looked at his damaged shirt. Scratching his head, he tried to recall why exactly he had worn such a high-quality shirt to weapons training, as the shirt was actually silk, not linen or cotton... it would take a skilled hand to repair it without making the stitching obvious and ugly, since the cut was across the weave. Sighing, he remembered hearing about a wherhandler seamstress who was quite skilled... perhaps he could take it to her, see if she might be able to take care of it? Porita, he remembered her name was.

Shirt in hand, he headed off to the wherhandler apartments. Squinting a bit as he entered them, forgetting how dark they were kept, he slowly made his way down the hallway until he found the common room, hoping to find someone there to ask for Porita's whereabouts. Entering the room, it seemed empty except for a pale young woman sitting on a couch, with a blue wher lying nearby. Walking up to her, M'gnum gave a friendly smile and said, "Excuse me, m'lady, do you know where I might find a wherhandler by the name of Porita?"

[Rowana]

Porita jumped as the man actually came up and spoke to her. She'd been lost in thought and not paying much attention to him as he entered. Now she stared up at him with wide eyes. He was an older gentleman, but handsome none the less. She looked down, blushing, but Posk jumped up to nudge the man playfully. He liked this new person, he seemed nice. Meeting new friends was always wonderful! Even if they didn't have new whers for him to play with. Porita finally realized the man had mentioned her own name.

"That's me, sir," she said quietly, toying with her skirt nervously. What could he possibly want from her? He didn't seem mean or dangerous, but you could never be too sure. She almost asked him, but held her tongue. She couldn't be certain of this man's intentions just yet. It was better to wait and see what he would say.

[Aftershock]

M'gnum jumped a bit as Posk leapt to his feet, thinking perhaps the wher was being protective of his handler, then chuckled and smiled as the blue nuzzled him affectionately. Reaching over, he scratched Posk behind one of his headknobs, knowing that at least Higginth had trouble itching such a spot due to his claws presenting a danger to scratching at such a sensitive place.

As he scratched Posk, he looked down at the young woman sitting before him, noting her demure behavior and the blush on her cheeks. He smiled, immediately becoming fond of this lady, as she seemed as if she was much more representative of the concept of a true "lady" from his Tome of Chivalry, a personality that seemed overall quite rare in the South. Then, she spoke, and his smile broadened as he said, "Ah, I was lucky, then, that the first person I found to speak to was, in fact, the person I seek."

Taking the damaged shirt, he spread it out over his hands in front of Porita, showing the cut section. "This shirt got damaged during a weapons practice, and the material is of quite high quality. I heard you were a talented seamstress, and I was wondering if you might be able to repair such a cut without showing evidence of the damage afterwards," he explained, crouching onto one knee so as to be able to be more eye-level with the sitting bluehandler.

[Rowana]

Porita touched the shirt gently, glad to have something to focus on besides her strange guest. He was right about the material. It was silky and smooth in her hand and certainly wouldn't be easy to handle. She couldn't imagine weapons training herself, but it certainly looked dangerous. She blushed again at M'gnum's praise of her skill. She wasn't that great and she certainly couldn't match a trained Weaver. She just liked to sew. Still, she wanted to do her best.

"Posk, would you get my thread basket, please?" The wher, who'd been curling around M'gnum's legs, woofed happily. He turned and bounded down the hall to her room. Porita ran a finger down the tear again. "I could mend it," she agreed slowly, her voice soft and nervous. "But you would still be able to see it if you looked close. Perhaps it would be better if you found a Weaver?" She wasn't sure if they had any at the Weyr, but surly a rider would be able to find one.

[Aftershock]

M'gnum gave Posk one final scratch before the wher bound off to do His' bidding, and gave Porita another smile as she expressed her doubts, saying, "Oh, m'lady, I have confidence in your abilities. Your fingers appear quite dexterous and skilled, and I have heard nothing but praise of your capabilities as a seamstress. I trust my shirt to your delicate hands," he concluded, bowing slightly at the waist and depositing the shirt completely into Porita's grasp.

Indicating a spot on the couch beside Porita, M'gnum said, "Excuse me, m'lady Porita, but with your leave I would sit beside you."

[Rowana]

Porita blushed again as she took the shirt. No one had given her such praise in quite a while and never on the first meeting. She brushed the shirt flat in her lap, glad to have something else to focus on besides the man now asking for her very permission to sit down. Goodness, but he was so polite, even compared to the Southern men she already knew. "Oh...of..of course," she waved at the spot next to her. She wouldn't dream of making him stand all this time. "Thank you," she mumbled softly, managing a weak smile. "I'll do my very best."

Posk returned, carrying a large basket in his mouth. This was Porita's sewing basking, filled with everything from clothe strips and threads to needles. She rummaged through it until she found the right needle and a thread that matched the shirt's color almost exactly. Setting those aside, she brought out a cushion of pins and began carefully pinning the tear closed. Posk yawned, already bored with this activity. He moved to nuzzle M'gnum's leg as he sat. He liked his man, he was being nice to His, and that was always a good start.

[Aftershock]

M'gnum smiled as Porita gave him leave to sit, giving the woman some space as he carefully sat beside her, smoothing his pants as he listened to the woman speak. He quickly replied, "Your best is why I came to you, m'lady. I would not expect someone of your purported skill to do any less."

M'gnum watched with interest as Porita's thin, dexterous fingers did her work, his other hand reaching down to resume rubbing behind Posk's headknobs as the blue wher settled in beside the bronzerider's leg. His expression showed genuine curiosity in the young woman's craft, nodding to himself slightly in approval of Porita's demure behavior and delicate, feminine hobby... she was, in fact, one of the most closely matched women to the ideal lady outlined in his Tome of Chivalry, and his face expressed open and honest appreciation of the quiet young woman's charms.

[Rowana]

Porita blushed again at the praise, unsure how to respond to it. She returned her attention to the task at hand. The needle was quickly threaded and the work began. Porita worked slowly and carefully, gradually bringing the tear closed with tiny stitches. She worked for some time, even beginning to hum absently. She'd almost forgotten M'gnum was still sitting next to her. Posk gave a sigh of satisfaction and Porita looked up, suddenly aware that the man was still there and watching her.

She look away quickly, trying to hide her nerves at being watched. "This...could take some time," she ventured shyly. "Perhaps...you would rather come back later?" That probably meant tomorrow, given that he wasn't a handler, but she was sure she would be done by then.

[Aftershock]

M'gnum huffed a bit in embarrassment as Porita spoke, averting his gaze as his face colored just the slightest bit red in a blush. "I... I'm sorry, m'lady. I did not mean to make you uncomfortable. I merely was entranced by the dexterousness of your fingers as you mended my shirt." Clearing his throat, he continued, "As a knight, I am required to expand my skills even to those not common to a man of my stature, so as to be able to perform basic functions independently of others, in case one must attend a quest. However, my clumsy stitches compared to yours are like a man fighting with a branch as opposed to a well-balanced sword... it might get the job done, but it lacks all... grace and... beauty..."

As his final words trailed off, he realized he had subconsciously moved closer to the young wherhandler, staring into her eyes (unless she averted them) with his large, strong hand nearly poised to be placed upon her own gently. Breaking free from the spell, M'gnum jumped back a bit, stuttering and coloring once more as he apologized profusely. "M-M'lady, I forget myself. I... I should go, to let you finish your work without my distracting, and embarrassing, actions." Moving to stand, he said, "I... I will be here on the morrow to retrieve my shirt, if that is acceptable to you?"