So Much Shopping! [Open] [Weaver's Stall]

[kysseh]

"Good thing you know what she wants. I haven't got a clue how to tell the difference between kinds of fabric," K'von observed, watching Savitri fuss over the offerings at the stall. The brownrider had generously volunteered to take some weyrfolk to the Gather by dragonback, and knowing the goldweyrling and her brother had made him volunteer to take those two first. He and Dohulth had brought a sleepy-looking wherhandler as well, though the young man was looking far more alert now that he was there. Virast had wandered off, and Swithin was further down the same stall, leaving K'von to shop with Savitri. He minded little, for Savitri gave good advice.

Said good advice had led him to the purchases that he now clutched in both hands. The blanket was for himself and for the object of his interest. The pattern was a fairly simple one with a lot of shapes and stripes, repeating patterns. The brilliance of the colors had been the appeal, though, and he rather liked the thought of cuddling with Kalierre whilst tucking the pretty blanket around them both. odd and sentimental, of course, but he could scarcely help that. His other purchase was for Kalierre alone, and he admired the work done on the dark brown bag. It was simple, sturdy fabric, and he had figured the pockets and the deep central part of the bag would make for good for carrying things around. Savitri had a smaller sort of bag like it, and he figured if nothing else, it was useful. That was good, wasn't it? And the rich dark brown was just a very nice color, so that couldn't hurt either, in his mind. His purchases had cost him six marks, but he considered it well worth it.

Amused by the brownrider's fussing, Savitri continued her searching. Aliscia had asked her to pick up a few things and had given her quite a handful of marks in addition. "You're taking care of Tanith and me. Go crazy with it. I don't need much," the greenrider had said to her younger friend's protests, and Savitri had given in rather unwillingly. Aliscia had asked for some fabric, and Savitri planned to get some as well. The women intended to bond over feminine pursuits, something which had made both of them snicker. Both could sew, Savitri much more skillfully, but the mere thought of the busybody goldweyrling and the cranky gravid greenrider bonding over making clothes was quite simply hilarious.

"That's why she asked me to get things and not you," the young woman observed, which elicited a chuckle from the man lingering around. Savitri spied a good stack of fabrics and flipped through them, indicating four separate colors of the same toughness of fabric. Light enough to be comfortable yet tough enough to withstand damage... yes, that was exactly what was needed. "One yard of each of those, please. And a large roll of the same color thread for each. And needles." The stall owner nodded and handed over the needles and thread first, and Savitri counted out the necessary marks while the woman worked.

It did not escape her attention that the stall keeper looked over K'von's knots and then her own. A brownrider and a gold weyrling, and the woman had gone slightly wide-eyed at the sight of that. Savitri chose to not acknowledge that and was not surprised when the total came to six and a quarter marks. The last time she had shopped at a Gather, she had been ridiculously overcharged for things... or they had tried, at least. Savitri was a fast learner, and wearing her knots tended to make people think twice about trying to pull a fast one. She happily passed over the marks and claimed her purchases, settling them into her bag and then stepping back. There... that was-

"Oh, look, kiddo. Just your color!" K'von suddenly said cheerfully, and Savitri turned to find the brownrider gesturing at a bright purple fabric, so bright that Savitri wanted to twitch at the mere thought of wearing it. "I think not. It's much more your color," she replied, earning herself a grin. Of course he was happy about bothering her. She did edge over towards him to rifle through the pile of fabric, just to satisfy her own curiosity. Ohh, more pretty colors!

She shouldn't have looked.

[glamourie]

"That's pretty. Can we get one of those?" asked Kalerary, one hand stretching out to indicate a blue-green shimmery shirt edged with white. Just the look of it made it clear it was expensive, but it was cut to a small size - small enough for a child. It would need to be hemmed more to be short enough for someone as tiny as Kalerary, but the size was close enough to hers that it was not an unreasonable request. At least, not entirely. It was obviously a costly shirt, quite possibly the most so at the entire stall, and Kalerary was not innocent of that knowledge. Part of her draw to it was that it was expensive, though most was for the aquatic sea-blue color, like the waves shifting under sunlight. She did so love blue.

Folding her arms, the little girl looked over her shoulder. Her hair was tied back in a very tight braid that fell to her elbows, though a few wisps of dark brown still fell around her so-accusing gray eyes. Her gather finery consisted of a long blue skirt and a white shirt that were both a little too big on her, but not necessarily unappealing. Compared to some of the hold girls, she looked very plain, but she didn't mind. It usually took wrangling to get her into a skirt at all. She looked nice, though. As nice as she could. Her expression countered the pretty, little-girl appeal, though. Her eyes were narrowed, arms mostly folded and a scowl was playing over her features - for good reason. She wanted to be with Z'hin. He was her hero. And he was not.

Ka'rys lifted one hand and rubbed his temple absently. He was steadily forming a headache. Gathers were not his favorite things to attend because he typically did not buy much in the way of supplies. Most of his savings was spent on Ciceroth. He'd agreed to come only because Z'hin said his daughter would be there, and then - rather than stay - the brownrider had traipsed off because of a green deciding to Rise at the Weyr. Needless to say, he was irritated, though he wasn't sure he had a right to be. His problem was that he felt so awkward with Kalerary, and she was making it very clear how mad at him she was. Not that she wasn't justified, but constant reinforcement of her irritation was not pleasant. It wasn't in what she said, but rather what she didn't say, and the slight movements she made, the ever-so-dark looks. Or maybe it was guilt on his part?

His gaze snagged on the shirt and he mentally flinched. "You sure you want that one? We could always get a length of fabric and have one made," he replied, voice a lot more patient than he felt. The words earned a glare, but Ka'rys ignored it to step up to the shirt and examine it calmly. It was nice enough but the amount it cost made him twitch. Not that he didn't have enough saved, but why spend that much on a simple outfit? Women. He'd never understand them, even though he tried very hard. Inhaling, he glanced from Kalerary to the shirt and then back again, comparing in his mind. "This looks a bit big, Kalera. Do you really want to sit and get fitted here, when there's so much to see? Blossom's a pretty place."

"I don't like flowers, I don't like dolphins, I really don't like how girly everyone here is and I don't like being called that. I like the shirt," she replied with a scowl. "But if you'd rather me stand for a bunch'a candlemarks just to get fitted at the Weyr then fine. I like it, even if it is big."

Ka'rys quirked an eyebrow and eyed the shirt for a moment before sighing in exasperation. He'd called her that since she was born and just because she was being haughty didn't mean he was going to stop. Nevertheless, he dropped the topic, instead eyeing the shirt. "We'll keep it in mind and come back to it if you don't want anything else. I will get you more clothes, and if we have enough after your normal clothing is bought, we'll get this one. Sound -- Savitri?" He'd heard speaking, and his words made Kalerary blink and step over to stand right next to his legs. Both of her hands clenched around his knee and she turned to follow his gaze, but Ka'rys was oblivious, aside from putting one hand on her shoulder instinctively; meant to comfort. Worrying came back ridiculously quickly. More someone's color, she'd said -- what was Savitri doing at the Weaver's stall?

"What's a Savitri and how much does it cost?" Kalerary asked quietly with a glance up toward her father. When she realized she was holding onto his leg, however, she immediately let go and forced the scowl back to her face. She was being nasty consciously. "I don't think I want one, it sort of reminds me of sour fruits..."

Perhaps unintentionally, Kalerary managed to make Ka'rys burst into hysterical laughter, his free hand coming up to cover his mouth and hide the smirk. Sour indeed. Yes, Savitri was sour. He bowed his head so that the shadows hid the smile, but it was hard to contain. What was more entertaining was the fact that he was fairly sure Savitri could hear that part of what Kalerary had said. It would be hard to explain the child's presence, but for the moment he was exceptionally amused. He could just imagine the glare. Evidently picking at Savitri was as hereditary as the dark brown hair and short stature. That was almost reassuring to him, really.

[kysseh]

"No, no... this is your color," K'von said, this time fully genuine as he held up the length of beautiful mild green cloth, the kind that would make a lovely dress. The brownrider spied a familiar face on the approach, but he opted to not warn Savitri, mostly because she seemed thoroughly entranced by the fabric in front of her. Ahhh, women! He knew that the goldweyrling was one of the last females one could accuse of vanity, but she was only female, after all. And very female at that, he noted as he looked her over. He was only male, after all, and she was a rather attractive young woman when she was not snarling or snapping. "By the way, that outfit suits you too..." he drawled lazily, earning himself a glare for his efforts.

Savitri opted not to comment that the brownrider looked rather handsome himself. His dark brown shirt and pants set off his lovely eyes, and while he was not fancily dressed, he certainly was not underdressed. Of course... she could not speak about Gather outfits. Her ankle-length skirt swirled around her legs when she turned, highlighting the dancing shoes she had worn with the intent of roping some helpless, hapless male into dancing with her. Sure, the skirt was just a simple, plain light brown with a bit of embroidery on the hem, but the green shirt was certainly an eye-catcher. It was a little more snug than her usual, and Aliscia had practically forced her into it, insisting it brought out her eyes. Savitri had to agree with her on that. Between the snugness, the color, and the fact that it was just a fingerwidth lower in the front, she considered it to be among the fanciest clothing she owned. Perhaps that was why she liked it.... and she liked the fabric she was currently fingering with a great deal of temptation. That would make a lovely, lovely dre-

The sound of her name had her whirling around, the loose layer of her hair flaring out behind her. The young woman's eyes darted over the scene before her, widening at the sight of Ka'rys' appearance... and the fact that a child was clinging to her legs. Her expression must have relayed her surprise, for she was floored at the idea of Ka'rys having offspring. The girl was unmistakably his, though, and she was reminded of Aliscia's comments from several sevendays before. Her gaze instinctively snapped back to Ka'rys after a brief second, and she took the time to look him over thoroughly from head to toe, shifting the strap of her bag on her shoulder. Well, she had no complaints.

"Hello, Ka'rys. And... Kalerary, right? Aliscia told me you got a kitten too," she said easily, well aware that Ka'rys would pick on her for letting her gaze linger on his appearance. He always took advantage of her 'lapses' in concentration. Quiet snickering could be heard behind her, and she turned to give K'von a withering look, giving Ka'rys a good look at Mutasim's present for her, the hairsticks that very carefully held the top layer of her hair in a neat bun at the back of her head. The rest of her hair hung loose, and Shadow was playing with it, blissfully ignoring Ka'rys as he tried to snag a tendril between tiny forepaws. Kalerary's opinion of her had her turning back rather quickly, mostly because Shadow impertinently giving her an image of the bronzerider laughing at her expense.

"Thank you. I'd rather be sour than too sweet," she observed, flicking a faint smile at Kalerary. She could hardly be insulted by the child's observation, though Ka'rys' response had her wanting to kick him. No matter; she would get him back for that stunt later. "And much better sour than bitter." That had been a pointed jab, she thought, but she and Ka'rys could sort out their issues when innocent--and eavesdropping, given K'von's amusement--ears were not present.

K'von was indeed highly amused, and he moved to Savitri's side to look down at the pair before him. He was used to being taller than people, but being so much bigger than someone was very entertaining. Seeing as the weyrleader was about to have his rump reamed--he had gotten skilled at reading Savitri's warning signs--he turned his attention to the little girl. What was she doing... with weyrleader knots? It had him wondering and grinning, and the brownrider acted on impulse and came to attention, half-bowing toward the little girl and grinning from ear to ear. "Forgive me, weyrleader! I didn't recognize you! Fine day, isn't it?"

[glamourie]

The word 'flattered' would have been an understatement for how Ka'rys felt at the sweep of Savitri's eyes over him and he couldn't help but pick slightly at his sleeve. His gather finery was nice - probably the nicest thing that he owned, and it actually fit him - at leasrt, better than anything else. The leggings were looser than most people's were, but they weren't huge like most of his clothing was. They were a deep black with silvery-blue piping up the sides, laced together like knots up the outsides of his legs, and his belt was black with a dusting of the same silvery-blue color along the buckle. The tunic he wore was the exact same shade as the piping, but it had white edgings around the collar, and it was actually cut right for him, though like everything else he owned, it was long-sleeved, though the ends were cut at an angle to fall around his hands. He thought it looked nice, though he'd half-expected to be scolded due to the lack of color in the clothes. Silvery-blue, nothing vivid. It was... pleasant that she didn't have a problem with it at all, as evidenced by her blatant appreciation. He mentally preened, but outwardly lowered his head and distracted himself with looking at Kalerary.

The fact that this 'Savitri' was a person had a very interesting effect on Kalerary. Her outward brattiness was gone, replaced by a half-cower behind Ka'rys's legs, her fingers tightening in his legging as she peeked out at the two people that spoke. Ka'rys's free hand lingered on her shoulder, meant to comfort and quite succeeding. Even though it embarrassed her, the little girl made no effort to move from her spot; he was a safety net and even if she was really angry, she did not believe for one second that her father would hurt her or allow anything to happen to her. Z'hin trusted him, after all, right?

She knew her name. Kalerary peeked out at the girl, then glanced up at her father for confirmation, but Ka'rys was pale. Very, very pale. Any appreciation he might have had for Savitri's outfit was promptly dissolving with the realization that apparently everyone but him knew Kalerary was at Selenitas. He forced his expression back to a neutral smile and turned to look down at the blue-gray eyes staring up at him, while privately clinging to Ciceroth for emotional support. He was angry but not so much at Savitri as in general. What was wrong with people that they could find out a child who looked so much like him was running around and not even think to ask him about it? He strongly considered throwing a tantrum and refrained - barely.

"Kalerary, meet Savitri. Savitri is Selenitas's newest goldrider." He was being quite deliberate in mentioning that. While it was unfair to Savitri, he found it unfair that Savitri never bothered to tell him that Kalerary was at Selenitas at all. Surely the name gave her away? Besides, she had on her knots. It wasn't like he was revealing a secret. "Her dragon is Hepaticath."

"Cissy sired her," Kalerary confirmed quietly, still shyly watching K'von and Savitri. At her father's slight nod, she nodded back, but did not come out from her hiding spot. She felt safer, clinging to him as she was. These were strangers, but strangers wouldn't - couldn't - hurt her with her papa there. Even if he did leave. He was there for now. She'd asked about the kitten, though, and Kalerary scrunched up her nose. "That's because the mean bronzerider," she spat the word like the insult she perceived it to be and ignored the slight flinch her father offered in response, "refused to keep him. He wasn't good enough for him. So I took him. He's Reject - or Reggie. And sour isn't always better than sweet. Sour usually means something's gone rotten, don't you know that?"

Forcing his nerves to still, Ka'rys toyed with the end of Kalerary's braid and snorted indignantly. Yes, he caught the edge to Savitri's words, but he pointedly refused to respond to them, instead adding, "Not in the case of fruit. The man with Savitri is K'von. He's a brownrider, and his dragon is Dohulth. He's friends with Kalierre, Phremath's rider." As soon as Z'hin was away, Kalerary made a point to go on and on about the dragonhealer (making Ka'rys agitated with Kalierre for not telling him she was there), so Ka'rys knew that they'd met. His gaze flicked sharply to K'von, but rather than glare, he smiled widely, "Yes, it would do you well to remember. I suggest you buy her that shirt as repayment." He pointed at the shirt that Kalerary was eyeing only a moment ago. "She quite wants it, and you obviously owe her an apology for forgetting who she was. Don't you agree?"

The six-turn-old glanced from K'von to Ka'rys, then back again before jumping on the idea. "He's right," she said, though she came out slightly from behind her father's leg. "You should get me that shirt as an apopogy 'cause it's not right to forget important stuff like that. Where we come from, you could get into lots n' lots of trouble. But I'll forgive you if you get me the shirt..."

[kysseh]

Savitri waited patiently through introductions, not missing the fact that Kalerary almost cowered behind her father's legs. Afraid of people? No, she doubted it, given how forward the girl had been previously, and Aliscia had said that the girl had followed her. Perhaps she just intimidated the girl; Savitri was known to unintentionally have that effect on people on occasion. Kalerary's outburst about the errant bronzerider had her raising a curious eyebrow, but she merely flicked a small smile in response, patiently waiting for Ka'rys to finish his introductions. K'von's response had her chuckling, though her eyebrows rose at the sound of the bronzerider and his offspring's demands. Surely K'von wouldn't... or, would he.

He would, actually, and K'von grinned even wider, if that was possible. He had marks to spare, and little Kalerary clearly wanted the pretty shirt. It had dawned on him some time ago that he would likely never have children of his own, so... why not spoil this one? The good-natured brownrider gave a deep bow to the 'weyrleader', unable to resist chuckling. "Of course. My deepest... deepest apologies..." He moved past the pair--giving them some space so as to not upset the little girl--to get the shirt and then accost the stallkeeper. Marks changed hands, and a triumphant K'von fairly strutted back. "Victory! It is a little big, though..." he commented, letting his gaze quite obviously slide over to Savitri. "You... weyrling. You know how to fix these things, don't you?"

He did not wait for an answer and simply walked toward Kalerary, kneeling down to be on her level and extending the beautiful shirt to her. "Such a lovely shirt for you, weyrleader. I'm sure Savitri can fit it for you so it doesn't get your way. I'm jealous." The brownrider heaved a dramatic sigh. "I can't wear pretty things. Not my color is it?" Was he being ridiculous? Of course.

"You're shameless, K'von. But yes, I can sew well enough," Savitri replied dryly, amused. Something told her to keep a fair distance from Kalerary. The girl seemed to be very nervous, and unlike K'von, Savitri was all for leaving space. "Reggie is lucky you were there. I'm sure he'll be happier with you and your father anyway." Her father... whom Savitri wanted to embrace and wish a good Gathertime. She was sorely tempted to do so anyway but hung back, patiently waiting for K'von to finish his dramatics. Speaking of dramatics and oddities, that did bring something interesting to mind...

"Cissy?" Cissy? Oh... PlaymateMine. He is called Cissy? Hepaticath inquired curiously, her voice a little fainter than normal from distance. The gold's curiosity made Savitri chuckle. "Well, I suppose he's your bronze, then, Kalerary. 'Cissy' is a good name for a weyrleader's bronze." She was smiling widely, she knew, but the healer could scarcely help it, her green eyes dancing with amusement. Hepaticath had latched onto the new nickname and was going to use it as soon as she saw her friend again, Savitri knew. "And... is this your babysitter? No, your drudge. You should make him carry your shirt for you. He seems to have a free hand," the young woman said, gesturing at Ka'rys with one hand and offering him a bright smile. He looked far too attractive right now...

[glamourie]

Kalerary watched K'von intensely as he moved to buy the shirt, and her eyes widened; her expression changed more to an amused look than the accusing one. Lifting one hand, she laced her fingers through Ka'rys's before examining the shirt intensely. From the brownrider to the goldrider she looked, back and forth, measuring and skeptical. But... he looked sincere enough. He bought the shirt, after all, and the goldrider didn't look mad. He didn't seem remotely angry... Her head cocked to the side and she leaned against the side of her father's legs, but was no longer hiding behind him. Holding his hand, yes, but not hiding. Ironically, she did not realize how tightly she was clinging to him for support, either, or she might have tried to hide it. She was, after all, still upset with him - but it came naturally to her, trusting her father again, even if Turns had passed. Once upon a time, she was closer to him than she was her mother, after all. Not that she remembered that.

"I don't think it's your color," she admitted shyly before eyeing the blue-green shirt. "I'd go with somethin' lighter... like this." One hand lifted to indicate a pale pink shirt with wide, poofy sleeves, and she grasped it before holding the sleeve out to show to K'von. There was white edging on the ends of the sleeves; clearly it was an overly feminine shirt and likely designed for a child Kalerary's edge, though she would never have worn it. Pink was not her color at all. "This - this is better for you, I think."

However, her focus was quickly shifted to Savitri, and Kalerary narrowed her eyes before releasing her father's hand and stepping away. "I don't live with him," she said, no small amount of bluntness in her voice, and she did not notice the very-visible flinch from next to her, nor the rigid stance the bronzerider assumed. She was too young to recognize that her words had clearly struck a nerve with him. "I live with Z'hin but he had to go for some reason. I don't know why. He said to stay with him, so I did." She sniffed, then pulled the shirt against herself, looking thoughtfully at Savitri, but she changed topics quickly enough. Her gaze flicked over toward the west, where she knew Ciceroth was at. Cissy, hers? Hmm. "Cissy the FEMALE bronze," she corrected, sniffing again, then she held the shirt up. However, her irritation quickly faded to a bright smile. "Yes, my drudge~ My drudge. You'll carry it?"

"Of course," Ka'rys replied dryly, but much of his agitation faded at the sudden burst of embarrassment he got from a certain bronze on the other end of the Gather. Ciceroth did not like being referred to as female, or 'Cissy' - it was what he called him when he was irritated with him. Some part of his insides was still stinging at how quick Kalerary was to correct any assumption that they were close, but... he didn't feel right arguing with her. Too soon. He'd just got her back, the last thing he wanted was to immediately push her away again, even if she was acting extraordinarily spoiled. He could only assume that it was half a front to hide how vulnerable she was. Evidence of that came with the way she hid behind his legs, or how close to him she stood when she was frightened. "Would you mind if I folded it up, weyrleader? I would hate to risk dropping it as it is."

At her nod, Ka'rys gently folded the shirt and glanced at K'von gratefully. The fabric was laid over the bend of his arm and he eyed Savitri for a moment before smiling. "Cissy the Female Bronze, it has a nice ring. Might I recommend some of those strips of fabric for ribbons? She's certainly not looking very pretty today --"

You wouldn't dare.

Oh, yes he would. Yes he would. "The pink and red ones would go quite nicely with his hide. Ribbons, bows. I'm sure he- she, I mean, wouldn't mind if you tied them to the end of her tail and around her ridges," Ka'rys continued, ignoring the bronze's growing discomfort. "Cissy will be the prettiest bronze in the land. I bet K'von would help you. Why don't you and him go look at some of those fabrics? I've your savings, we'll buy you some, hm?" He lifted one hand to point at the fabrics lining the stall, and Kalerary's eyes lit up. Clearly the idea of tying ribbons around a dragon appealed to her. As she preened and took K'von's hand, he cast a half-glance at the brownrider, hoping he hadn't offended him - but he wanted to talk to Savitri, and besides, K'von was doing a marvelous job of making Kalerary lighten up as far as the Gather went....

You're going to pay for this, Rysmine. Just you wait - I will get revenge --
Bring it on, O'mighty Female Bronzie.

[kysseh]

If he ever, by some miracle, had a child, he wanted one like this Kalerary, K'von had decided. She was adorable and obviously fond of her father... or so it seemed to him, given the her posture and the way she clung to his hand and leaned against him. She was looking rather amused too, and K'von was glad for it. He liked to make people smile, after all. "Oooh, are you sure? I don't want to make myself look too pale," he said with some feigned concern as she offered forth the shirt. Pink. What was it with girls and pink?! "I don't know... I think that might be more Savitri's color. We'd need a brighter shade for her, though. Like..... that one there!" The brownrider's scarred left hand gestured at a nearby shirt, a much brighter shade of pink that looked more like flower petals than anything else.

Savitri recognized Ka'rys' reaction to Kalerary's words, and she gave him a brief look of sympathy, acknowledging that he was obviously upset about the topic. She was stubborn, but she was not cruel or oblivious. Something about Kalerary living with Z'hin--why Z'hin, she wondered--had him bothered. That... or Kalerary's refusal to acknowledge him. Either way, Savitri intended to talk to her friend about it, as he seemed obviously perturbed. Ka'rys was being remarkably good-natured, despite Kalerary's harsh words, and the young woman could not resist a smile at the obedience with which Ka'rys took the shirt to hold it. It was painfully obvious how much the bronzerider cared for the little girl.

"Cissy the female bronze. Hepaticath approves of hi--her!--name," Savitri replied, glancing back and forth between Ka'rys and Kalerary. Ka'rys was... encouraging Ciceroth's feminization? Odd. Amusing, though, and K'von seemed to be highly amused as well. The mention of ribbons had her nodding wisely as she gestured at the strips of fabric off to the side, willing to indulge the child on that count. The girl seemed more than a little spoiled on some counts, but given how skittish she seemed of people in general, a little indulgence could not hurt. "I'd recommend the pink too. Maybe you'd better get some purple too...?"

It did not take a genius to realize that Ka'rys wanted to talk to Savitri, and K'von was more than happy to oblige. Kalerary was an absolute dear--to him, anyways--and he graciously let her take his free hand, shifting his other purchases as he straightened to lead her over to the strips of fabric. The strap of the bag, he looped over his shoulder, tucking the blanket inside to free both hands. He had to bend a little to maintain a hold on her hand whilst still walking, but it was only a few paces, after all. "How about this one? This is a pretty one," he said, taking a strip of lovely, eye-shatteringly bright pink fabric off one of the top racks and offering it to the little girl for her perusal, smiling as he did. "Will it match her? We could get some yellows too! Yellows are pretty."

Savitri waited until the ribbon-seeking pair were at their goal before she approached Ka'rys and rested her hands lightly on his chest, tipping her chin up to press her lips to his cheek for just an instant before she stepped back. "I meant to do that earlier, but I didn't want to crowd Kalerary," she said simply, her green eyes dancing with obvious amusement. Her right hand might've lingered on his chest just a bit too long, but who was counting? Her gaze drifted over to his little companion and then back to him, smiling wryly in an effort to keep him from freaking out at her when she started into her inquiries. "I want to know... and I don't know where to start." Why was she fussing over his collar again? It didn't need fixing.

Stupid nerves.

[glamourie]

Too pale? Nah, Kalerary thought there was very little danger of that. To make sure, she held up her hand to the pink shirt, comparing her creamy skin to the pale fabric. In her opinion, darker colors tended to accentuate how pale someone was, rather than light. At least, her mother had always insisted that she wear lighter colors or extremely vibrant ones as opposed to the darker shades she naturally preferred... Her father was pale, like she was, and he looked okay in the lighter colors. The silvery-blue shirt looked good on him. Hmm. She guessed it didn't really matter though since her main reason for bringing it up was because she thought it would embarrass K'von. No boy ever wanted to wear pink. He handled it well, though, almost as well as her daddy had the idea of putting ribbons on his dragon and she couldn't help but grin ear-to-ear at the thought. Maybe he wasn't so bad after all? It would take some time to decide, but anybody who let her put ribbons on their dragon couldn't be all that bad. Especially when they were the Weyrleader and could probably get whatever they wanted and were noticed by everybody. No other bronzerider she knew would have ever allowed that. So... so many he wasn't as mean as she originally thought...?

Pushing that thought out of her mind, Kalerary took the time to glance at the brighter pink shirt before scrunching her nose up in an expression of distaste. "No, that one is more like papa's color," she commented, then bit her tongue at the word. Rather than acknowledge it, though, she grabbed tightly onto K'von's hand as he led her off. She didn't want to face him after calling him that. It showed she wasn't quite as angry as she was pretending to be and the last thing Kale wanted was for him to realize that he had a chance at getting back in her good graces. Of course, being led off prevented her from replying to the goldrider but that was okay - she'd remember and comment later.

Watching the pair move off, Ka'rys glanced at Savitri and smiled, unable to help himself. One hand came up to his cheek to rub the spot she kissed. He wanted to touch her - to reach out and run his fingers through her hair - but he refrained. As much as he'd have liked to lavish attention on her, Kalerary was present, and Hepaticath was awake surely. Awkward to say the least. They were also in public and he did not want to make things worse. Some part of him still half-expected Savitri to run off as soon as she realized how many more options she had - how many better options than him. He was at least ten turns older than her and doubtlessly more contrary than she was equipped to deal with on a regular basis, he was certain that once she realized she could find someone who would treat her well and wasn't as irritating and emotionally closed off as he was, she'd turn away. She would leave him. Thus he was trying not to get attached. Even if she didn't, being so flamingly affectionate could have bad effects. He could just foresee the bronzerider complaints.

"Ciceroth doesn't like his nickname," he replied weakly, since it was the first thing that came to mind. "He also doesn't want Hepaticath to know it - he's quite upset that she's found out." The bronze was. He could just feel Ciceroth's growing agitation. Not in words did he complain but the emotions were clear; he was displeased. Ridiculous.

Oh, but he'd known she would have questions. That was why he'd suggested K'von and Kalerary get busy over with the strips of cloth. They would surely be distracted, and he wouldn't have to worry about answering cryptically to avoid the six-turn-old overhearing. Yes, he was practical in many senses, sometimes to the point of brutality, but the last thing he wanted was for his daughter to overhear what could easily degenerate into a fight if not handled right. When he and Leradi lived together, they'd made a point not to bicker in front of Kale. He wouldn't change that just because Leradi was gone. "Well," he began, one hand moving up to rest a finger against her hair combs. He wanted to pull them out. He much preferred it when her hair was down. Not that she ever asked his opinion. "I guess I can answer one of them easily enough. Calistoth Rose back at the Weyr, and Jessereth is there. That is why Z'hin had to leave." That was almost certainly not one of the ones she wanted to know, but his ego wouldn't let him answer anything else without being asked.

Oblivious to the conversation the other two were having, Kalerary regarded the ribbons seriously. "No, no. Cissy is pretty, he - she's got this light bronze color almost like a gold. I think rosy gold hues would be best. Not bright and not vibrant. Sunset could be kinda pretty though I s'pose," she explained, before pointing at a strip of cloth that was a deep reddish-pink without being bright. Rich in color, but frosted almost, and the edges of the cloth were sewn with gold. "I think that could be cut into ribbons and made really really pretty. You think? Wouldn't it shine?" To show what she meant, she grabbed the cloth and waved it under the light, so that the lighting caught the gold edgings and accented them with a shimmer. "Hmm?"

[kysseh]

Papa? K'von wanted to grin down at the little girl but refrained from doing so. Poor dear seemed to dislike her father so much, but any child who willingly called their father 'papa' could not hate the man that much. She seemed to be quite willing to let the subject go, though, and the brownrider was not willing to push. This was a Gather, and Gathers were meant to be happy, cheerful, not-upset occasions. "Pretty, hmm? I think that one would be lovely" K'von affirmed, grinning as she waved the bit of cloth around. A nice pale silvery-blue fabric caught his eye, and he took the little bit of fabric down and held it up to her hair. "How about this one for your hair? Hmmm.... wouldn't match the shirt, though..." he mused.

Matching colors was surprisingly hard work. How did females manage it, he wondered? He went with basic shades of brown, black, and gray, and those suited him well enough. Color was fun but optional and hard to manage at times. "What about this one for Cissy? Maybe Dohulth will let you tie some on him too. He'd look magnificent with color," K'von chuckled, holding up another bit of fabric in a very dark shade of orangey-gold. It looked like a coastal sunset in midsummer... and he liked it. "I think Dohulth is more of the bright colors sort of dragon, though..." You are horrible. But the hatchling may decorate me if she likes, because she is nice and you are not, Fat One. his dragon teased him good-naturedly, surprisingly easygoing about the concept. Odd male, he was.

Was he shy? Savitri wondered if that was the motivation for his smile and the mild rubbing of his cheek, inclining her head to one side to watch him. What was going through his head? She had half-expected him to react more physically to her touch, but the smile was incentive enough to initiate again at a later time. He really did need to smile more; it made him look younger and more... human. His protests were weak, at best, and Savitri knew that Hepaticath would hardly be discouraged unless Ciceroth himself expressed upset to her. She rather liked referring to him as 'CissyMine' in her own head, and Savitri almost wanted to relay that to Ka'rys. Almost. He would probably take that worse than the understanding that Hepaticath had similarly claimed him as hers now too. His dragon was not her only kept male.

"He'll have to tell her that. She likes it," Savitri said simply, watching his hand move up toward her hairsticks. Of course he would like Mutasim's gift to her. It was simply too fitting for him to not. "Gorgeous, aren't they? Mutasim made them for me. I'd have worn the hairpiece too, but since I decided to leave half my hair down-" She neglected to tell him the frivolous reason why. Honestly, when had she gotten to be such a girl about things?! Ridiculous. "-it would not have fit properly." She resisted the urge to take his hand in hers but only just. The skin-on-skin contact that she remembered... holding his hand as he led her back to the barracks... it warmed her. If he had not seemed shy about affection, she would have gone for it already. Bother. Difficult man.

Her annoyance grew as he answered a question that was quite obviously not the first on her mind. She scowled a bit and then made an effort to smoothe out her face, determined to not let him ruin her good day by being.... well, his usual difficult self. "That's not what I wanted to know, and you know it. Fine... when did she get here? Why didn't you tell me? Where is her mother... who is her mother? How old is she?" That fairly well covered it, and the tension in her jaw and faint narrowing of her eyes probably gave him a good clue to the fact that she was irritated. She was covering it rather poorly and wholly overreacting, but Savitri could hardly rein in her instincts to shake him. She trusted him. Why couldn't he feel similarly toward her? She hadn't given him any reason to distrust her... or, not that she could remember.

[glamourie]

"He might, the next time she says it," Ka'rys admitted. It wasn't that Ciceroth had a problem with nicknames - he certainly had never minded being called 'Ciss' at any rate. Cissy was just too feminine for Ciceroth's tastes. Having a very pale hide mistakable for gold did somewhat dampen his sense of humor when it came to femininity. He thought it was clear what color he was and in adulthood few mistook Ciceroth for anything but a bronze, but the lingering agitation remained. Male pride. For all of his kindness, the bronze was simple that: a bronze. He did possess an ego and having it brushed by referring to him as female, no matter how much in jest, wasn't appealing to him. On some levels, Ka'rys could understand it, but most of the time Ciceroth took a perverse delight in teasing him mercilessly, and for once it was nice to be able to turn the favor on the bronze. He'd get over it in time.

Casting a curious glance at her hairsticks, Ka'rys bit the sides of his tongue. They were nice enough, he supposed, but he disliked them. The main reason for that was that he much preferred her hair completely down and worn around her shoulders, which she did not seem to like doing for reasons he would never understand. It looked good on her, but Savitri seemed oblivious to that fact. It was as though she went out of her way to deny being feminine in any manner of the word. That the hairsticks came from Mutasim did not help his opinion of them at all, either. Part of him was immediately jealous and agitated. Logically speaking he shouldn't have been - it wasn't as though he had any claim to Savitri in any sense of the word. She'd admitted the boy was her friend and from her treatment of him she was obviously fond - so why was he jealous? He probably should have been happy. He wanted to be happy. His mind raced with so many questions - things he had no right to ask. Most of them were of the nature of how close she and Mutasim were; those hairsticks certainly did not look like a gift one would typically give to a friend. Then again, Ka'rys didn't give gifts...

Her scowl distracted him from his dark thoughts and he gratefully offered her a cheeky smile, unable to help himself. However, her onslaught of questions made him exhale sharply, one hand coming up to pinch the bridge of his nose before he glanced over at Kalerary...

"I don't think that would match my shirt, and I don't really like grays much," Kalerary confirmed, eyeing the ribbon. "Would look good on him though. My drudge likes grays. Maybe I will tell him he should buy it so we can tie ribbons around his wrists, like on Cissy. Pretty bronzie, pretty drudge." She bounced at the thought, clearly pleased with her reasoning. Somehow she doubted her father would fancy the idea of wearing ribbons around his wrists, but he hadn't objected to putting them around his dragon, so... so maybe he wasn't as uptight as she thought he was. She supposed it was a possibility, though further watching was needed. She didn't trust him as far as she could throw him, though. The ribbon that the brownrider held up was quickly grasped and she beamed happily before holding it up. "I like this one lots. It will look really good against Cissy's pretty, pretty hide."

Turning the ribbon around in her fingers, she cast a glance back at the other pair, then twitched. They were standing too close. She immediately looked back up at K'von before taking on an air of mild accusation, questioning quietly, "Do you know what they're doing and why they wanted to be rid of us?" Goldriders couldn't be trusted, her mama had said. More than once, her mama insisted goldriders were dangerous and unworthy of the fame and recognition they got just by having a dragon too crippled to fight thread. She remembered her mother saying that vividly. That made her slightly distrust the goldrider talking to her father... and it bothered her that even for a minute, she was not the center of his focus. "Why are they standing so close?"

It was, perhaps, fortunate that Ka'rys could not hear the child's question, for he likely would have pulled away if he did. As it was, he massaged the bridge of his nose before exhaling sharply. "I did tell you I had a child." There was no accusation in his voice, but some of the warmth left. "It's not my fault you stayed awake for an inordinate amount of time and obviously forgot." His eyes narrowed and he pushed his fingers back, brushing his dark brown hair out of his face. "Her mother, Leradi, was a greenrider at Fort.. and from the fact that Kalerary is here, I can only assume that she was killed or taken prisoner. For her sake, I actually hope the former. I don't know when she got here - I only found out a sevenday ago she was here at all and this is the first time I've seen her. So lovely to know everyone knew about her being here but me. Kalierre, Z'hin, Aliscia... you. I do appreciate you telling me." An edge of sarcasm crept into his voice; he couldn't help being somewhat annoyed. "And she's six."

[kysseh]

Savitri wanted very badly to question his sudden silence on the matter of her hairsticks. She thought they were quite lovely, in addition to being useful and matching her formal attire. Apparently, though, he had no desire to continue that conversation, and she attributed that to the sticks being a present from Mutasim. Men and their ridiculous pride. She followed his gaze when he glanced over at Kalerary, smiling briefly until he finally elected to answer her questions. The smile vanished to be replaced by a thin-lipped look of mild disapproval. "I didn't know who she was. I had my suspicions when Aliscia described her, as did Aliscia. I thought if she was yours, though, you'd know already. You're not oblivious or unobservant." On most things, anyway, which she did not add aloud.

He had told her already? She remembered... "I think you vaguely mentioned it. I don't remember much of that day," she confessed, pushing aside the memory of Ciceroth and her Cath tossing around the shirt. That brought a faint smile to her face, and she lifted one hand to assist him in brushing back his hair. "Keep this out of your face. I can't see your eyes; it gets in the way." Was she scolding him? If so, it was a tempered version of her normal lectures. She was content to see him and be enjoying this Gather, and ruining it with petty arguments was not enjoyable in the least. He had had something on his mind about her hairstyle, though, and she was determined to not let that go. "Now... what were you going to say about my hairpieces?"

"All right... no gray for you. Gray for your drudge... and some nice colors for Cissy," K'von chuckled, smiling widely in response to her own expression. Ah, children! So adorable, so precious, so blunt.... so.... odd. His smile faded somewhat, head inclining to one side in response to her query. The way that she was eyeing the pair of adults made K'von wonder. Her tone was almost accusatory to his ears, and he wondered if she was jealous of the affection the two had for each other. And yes, it was painfully obvious, even from where K'von was standing. Savitri was undeniably fond of Ka'rys, and the bronzerider did not dislike her in return. How to explain that to the child, though?

He shifted somewhat and then squatted down to be more on her level, flicking her a little grin. "They're friends. They haven't seen each other in a little while, so they had some things to talk about. I think she's wondering why she didn't get to meet you before," K'von said, though he really didn't know all of what was going on in that conversation. Given how close they were standing, he almost expected one to jump the other, but perhaps he was reading the vibes all wrong. He was known to do that on occasion... "Ooooh, found one to match your shirt!" he said suddenly, reaching over to snag the bit of fabric and hoping the little girl was not horribly angry for Savitri being around the bronzerider.

It did not escape Savitri's attention the way that Ka'rys insisted on looking over at his child. She reached up to touch his cheek. "She's beautiful, Rys. Spoiled but beautiful. Is she going to stay with you?" She could hardly blame the child for being spoiled for attention, given the loss of her mother. A quick glance over at the pair looking for ribbons made her wonder, though. K'von looked a little nervous, and Kalerary... she didn't know. Something was amiss. "Did I miss something?"

[glamourie]

He wanted very badly to argue with her. Most of Ka'rys was tempted to do so. It was hard not to turn and throw a fit that she'd known about Kalerary being at Selenitas long before he had. Was his anger inappropriate? Perhaps a little, but could anyone truly blame him? How many turns had he gone without seeing that child even once, and then to have her there before him yet not be told until so recently was irritating. He felt like he was the last one to know and Ka'rys was not happy, not happy at all. Savitri could excuse it all she wanted, but he was entitled to be irritated, and he had no intentions of backing down. Savitri couldn't begin to fathom how it felt to find out that his daughter was at Selenitas. And then to find out that others knew and just had excuses (and that, in his mind, was what they were: excuses) not to tell him? No, he wasn't unobservant or oblivious, but he was busy, how much time did he realistically have to spend around Weyrbrats? It was ridiculous to assume he knew, and he very much wanted to hit something. He settled for sniffing indignantly, and hoped it portrayed his agitation to his own satisfaction.

"I told you I had a child, yes," Ka'rys countered, sniffing again. "I don't imagine you do remember much. But I did say it, so do not accuse me of not telling you. That's not fair." He folded his arms over his chest and took a slight step back away from her before glancing - again - after Kalerary and K'von. It was so hard not to watch and make sure she was okay. How quickly he fell back into the mold of that; it had been four turns since he'd seen that little girl last and part of him felt as if it was longer, while another part felt as if no time at all had passed. Savitri's hands in his hair made him blink and look up before raising an eyebrow. "It does whatever it wants. I don't pretend to have control over my hair." Notice he again chose not to say anything about her hair pieces. What was there to say? They were strange, girly-items, and they were keeping her hair pulled back. He liked it when her hair was down, therefore, he didn't like the hair pieces. Simple really. He wouldn't be rude enough to tell her that, especially not when she so obviously was fond of them.

Kalerary was not to be distracted by the ribbons anymore, and she watched the goldrider and her father with a growing scowl. K'von's answer made her look up at him and she folded her arms across her chest, trying her best not to pout. She - of course, he had other people, since he'd been there so long, but why was he talking to that girl and not her? He'd left her and her mother; why was he talking to that one? Was she jealous? Yes, a touch, but most of it was confusion. Kalerary did not understand enough about her father to realize he'd never loved her mother; she was too young to really grasp that her parents were more friends than anything else, and too insecure to realize that she would always have a place in her father's heart above others. She didn't know him anymore, and it confused, startled and angered her. She did not want to share him with the goldrider at all...

"Why would she, I was at Fort," Kalerary replied drolly before looking back up at K'von. "Is she his weyrmate?" It seemed like a fair enough question, since she was a goldrider. Bronzes flew the golds, that was something everybody knew. She cocked her head to the side and eyed the fabric that the brownrider offered her. Hmm. "That's pretty, I like that." Some of her anger was fizzling down, but it still puzzled her. "I bet they're talking about us, you know. I bet they're talkin' about you and the pink and the purple and plotting against us. I think we should make them wear pink and purples. Like that." She lifted one hand and pointed at the most obnoxious and gaudy pink dress with a ribbon tying around the waist. "I think my drudge should wear that one. He'd look really pretty in it."

Half-glancing at Savitri again, Ka'rys shook his head. "She's spoiled because she was the center of her mother's world from the day she was born... and she's angry with me, as you've doubtlessly realized. I expect she'd tie my straps together if she thought she could get away with it. I'm not sure if this is her real personality or because she's mad, though - when we were alone she would scoff like she has been, but any time she got scared, she would cling to me and change. It's... interesting." He smiled weakly and looked down at the tops of his boots, doubtlessly sheepish. "She hates bronzeriders."

[kysseh]

Savitri opened her mouth to insist that she remembered things just fine when in the right state of mind, but she snapped it shut a brief instant later, deciding it just was not worth the effort to continue. He would stubbornly insist she was wrong, she would say he did not have a clue what he was talking about, and it would just degenerate into a useless argument that would have them both glaring daggers at each other. Or... well, that was how she thought it would end up. He seemed less than inclined to converse freely with her, and that bothered her immensely. Since that was unlikely to change, she left it be. It was not worth pursuing... not at a Gather.

"I didn't know she was yours, Ka'rys. I didn't even see her. Aliscia described her, and I thought it was an interesting coincidence. If I had known, I'd have told you. I would not keep that from you," she said quietly, acknowledging the fact that he stepped back away from her and let her hand fall back to her side, to rest on the bulging bag that hung from her shoulder. Her purchases were all stuffed inside, and she knew Aliscia would be pleased with the success of her shopping expedition. Not that Ka'rys cared about such things, though...

K'von chuckled at how clever the little girl was, nodding a bit at Kalerary as she looked over at the pair of ranking riders interacting. There was not much that escaped her notice, was there? He wondered if her scowl was jealousy or just dislike of Savitri. Her words confirmed it, though. "His weyrmate? She's just a weyrling now, so I don't think so... but ask your drudge about it. I know they're friends, but I don't know anything else," the brownrider said honestly, idly rubbing the back of his scarred hand against his thigh. He needed to apply some salve to that when he got home. It was itching again. "I don't think she knew you were at Fort... or knew about you at all. She was very surprised to see you." Savitri had not had to say a word; her expression had spoken volumes.

He doubted that the weyrleader and the goldweyrling were talking about pink and purple fabrics and clothes, but he decided to humor her and shifted on his haunches, grinning broadly as she gestured at the pink dress. "I think he'd look marvelous in that! And... well, why don't we add a nice ribbon to it? This one would make a nice headband and a big bow to go on top of his head." He gestured at a a similar shade of obnoxious pink, knowing that the weyrleader would likely get annoyed at him for encouraging the girl's antics. But... really, wasn't being a child all about having fun? He saw no harm coming from this. "Maybe we could put them in matching dresses, hmm?" Now Savitri would swat him, he knew, if she heard of that idea. The goldweyrling was not the pink kind of girl.

Savitri smelled something awry, indeed, but she managed to keep her suspicion off her face, if only because it would likely upset Kalerary and tip K'von off that she was wise to him cooking up something... juvenile. Instead, she focused on Ka'rys' admissions, sighing in mild frustration. She could not stay mad at him, it seemed. "I can see that she's mad at you. I doubt she hates you, though. She did go to you when afraid. She has to at least trust you a little," Savitri pointed out. He looked so shy and young, suddenly, and she stepped closer to him to slip her hand beneath his arm as if to let him escort her somewhere. "She seems to dislike me, too. Should we make sure they're not planning to kill us in our sleep?" she inquired, tugging very lightly on his arm with one lightly-tanned hand. "Since we're obviously not going to get much further in bickering?" She did take the opportunity to look over the breadth of his shoulders. Broader than she had thought. Very interesting.

[glamourie]

She really was not helping herself any. Ka'rys snorted again, but deliberately chose not to respond to the goldrider's words. She would never really understand what his problem was and trying to explain it was like trying to beat his head off of a brick wall. The problem was that it hadn't even occurred to Savitri to mention it to him. If he came across someone who looked like her - or someone who was described as looking like her - he would have asked about it; he would have tried to find out who the person was. She was so quick to comment that he should tell her things, how much she wanted him to give her information, yet it seemed to him that she had no problem keeping it; trust was a two-way street, and yes, part of him was quite bitter. Savitri wouldn't recognize that, though and it would make her angry if he tried to explain it, at least so he guessed. In his experience with her, Savitri had no problem busting his balls on things he was wrong on, but quite a few problems acknowledging when she did the exact same thing - and she got upset when it was pointed out to her. Normally that would not bother him but they were at a Gather and he refused to ruin the festivities by fighting with her. He refused.

But he was not going to go without some kind of retaliation. It wasn't in his nature. His mind turned with ideas and he glanced at her thoughtfully before shaking his head. "No, she doesn't hate me outright but she gets irrationally mad at the mere mention of ranking riders - bronze and gold alike. I expect you're getting run-off from her mother's hatred of goldriders; greenriders in the north rarely think much of the queenriders there," he replied with a slight shrug. "I'm sure that Aliscia can explain that to you if you need an explanation. Far as I can gather, Kalera doesn't much like bronzeriders here either -- T'rid apparently made a bad impression." Something about a feline - he'd been confused, but as far as he could follow her, Kalerary was mad at T'rid for abandoning one of the cubs that E'ri's little monster bore. Which meant she had a pet cat, and Ka'rys was so not thrilled by that idea...

"He didn't mentioned her," Kalerary said softly as she glanced back at K'von. "If she's just a weyrlingrider, shouldn't she be at the Weyr with her gold? 'Cause at Fort you're not s'posed to leave your dragons that long, 'specially not if you're a girl." Her dragon couldn't be old enough to fly that far could she? He hadn't been Weyrleader that long. Such an odd thought, him as a Weyrleader -- he didn't seem the type. She bit her bottom lip, but kept that thought to herself. She thought her question was okay -- surely it wasn't common for Weyrlings to be allowed to leave the Weyr. It was a rule at Fort, and sometimes the male riders could convince the Weyrlingmaster to let them travel but females? Never. Especially not a goldrider. Her mother once told her goldriders at Benden even got locked up....

Frown. "Matching dresses are silly, hers should be more frilly. Like that," Kalerary stated with a point at a very bright yellow-and-pink dress with decidedly obnoxious layers that made it resemble some kind of spring cake. Stick a candle in it and make a wish. She glanced up at K'von thoughtfully before indicating the purple one next to it. "And that one would be good for you, I think - you'd look pretty like that, like the grapes that they make wine out of, mmhmm."

Oblivious to the antics of the brownrider and the little weyrbrat, Ka'rys turned to look back at Savitri before lifting one hand and quite pointedly pulling the hairsticks out of her hair. He was huffy at her - so his self-control was gone. She would probably scold him and he honestly didn't care. "I like your hair better when it's down," he said bluntly before holding the sticks out for her to take. It was hard to keep from snorting at her, but her hair did look so much better completely down. He had a fixation on long strands that he could run his fingers through. It was definitely childish for him to take the hairsticks that way, especially when she was obviously attempting to be comforting, but she was the one who brought up that they were bickering again -- she deserved it. "You wear it up far too much for my liking. You wanted to know what I thought of the hairsticks -- that is what I think; they're unnecessary."

[kysseh]

Either he was angry with her or he was just being difficult. Savitri refused to inquire, however, because it would only make the arguing persist, which she would rather not go through. This was meant to be a festive occasion, and if he wanted to spoil it, he could sulk in the privacy of his own mind. She intended to enjoy herself, which included shopping, dancing, laughing, and whatever other things she felt like indulging in for a rare occasion. Savitri was not one given to celebrating much of anything, mostly because she had far too much to do to devote time to frivolity. These little days here and there were meant for fun, though, and Savitri was not going to allow Ka'rys' bad mood to ruin it. What was he in such a snit about anyway?

No matter. If it was that important, he'd open his mouth and tell her.

"Oh, T'rid. He apparently didn't want one of the little kittens and tried to shove it off on Aliscia," she said mildly, shrugging at his comments about Kalerary's apparent dislike of ranking riders. Suspicion on her mother's part, that was what it sounded like. That was the impression Aliscia had given her on the rare occasion that the greenrider spoke of Benden. The woman had no love for those in charge. "I'd rather see a competent greenrider in charge than some ninny who managed to snag herself a shiny dragon at a hatching. Not that being a queenrider counts for much there. It's the ridiculous bronzeriders that are counted," was nearly all she had said on the topic before falling silent. Savitri had left that subject be. "Kalerary will understand eventually. She's young. When she wants to change her opinion on goldriders in general and me in particular--if she ever does--then she'll change it," she continued shrugging. "I just hope K'von isn't giving her any wrong ideas."

K'von had no clue what the right idea to give a girl-child was, really. Her question caught him off guard, and he stared in bewilderment down at her for a second. Ahh, how to answer? "The weyrlings are allowed to leave if they have permission and if their dragons are old enough to be without them. Hepaticath is old enough to be alone for half a day. Wait 'til you get to see her. She's impressive," he said, digressing a bit on the subject of the junior queen. He was not fond of golds as a general rule, and Hepaticath, he tolerated. But she was rather pretty to look at. "She looks like honeycomb, that one. I think your Cissy is friends with her, so maybe he--she!--will introduce her sometime?"

She dismissed his idea of matching dresses, which he wrinkled his nose to. But matching was good, wasn't it? She seemed intent on putting Savitri into a frilly sort of dress that would have the goldweyrling in an apoplectic fit at the mere mention. His grin turned wickedly mischievous. Oh, yes... perhaps that idea was worth pursuing. The grin quickly faded into a completely genuine look of horror at the purple dress she suggested. He was quick to cover, though, by giving her an anxious look and leaning a smidgen closer to whisper loudly. "Are you sure?! I don't know if that cut is right for me... it might make my rear look too big." He made a show of glancing over his shoulder at his rump, which he couldn't see from that angle, of course. All for show.

If he was looking for a reaction, he got it... to some degree. Savitri gave an exclamation of surprise and dismay and then snagged the sticks out of Ka'rys' hand with brutal efficiency. What was that- oh. She was sure that gesture was not affectionate. It reeked of childish demand, but she humored him in tucking the hairsticks carefully away in her bag, amongst the fabrics she planned to bring back to the weyr. Fine, then. Her graceful fingers traced through the locks, teasing them into some semblance of decent order as she gave her companion a look of mild annoyance. "Please ask next time. I tie it back so it stays out of my face. I'd put it up again, but I know you'd just 'fix' it once more." Her expression turned to bemusement as she looked sideways at the bronzerider. "Why do you like it better down? It just gets in my face and irritates me."