[Ice Cream Weyrlings] Lesson 4

[Ruby]

Lesson Four:
Classroom: Dragonet and Rider Nutrition; Making of First Fighting Straps; Leather Maintenance
Training Field: Chain & Toss During Ground Drill (Riders); Wing and Leg Strengthening Exercises (Dragonets); Linking to Dragonets During Ground Drill (Both)

~~~

M'kai paced the front of the room, looking up every time a new Weyrling filtered in. For the past week, he'd been questioning his decision to apply for this position (were the marks really worth the effort?), but now that his class was coming in, he was ready to just leave. Sure, he'd watched Hepaticath's latest clutch hatch and impress - that had been the clutch where Tarath had come into the stands for Megs, of course - but beyond his... complicated relationship with his 'little sister', he didn't know anyone. Too bad they hadn't given him Cry. Those would have been fun lessons. No such luck, however.

Once several of them had taken seats and M'kai judged that the hour had probably turned, he folded his hands behind him and faced his new class. "Good morning, everyone," he started, resisting the urge to write his name on the dark-coated slate behind him, as if he were teaching Weyrbrats. "I'm M'kai, and I'll be filling in for Sel'n for a while. I guess my official title is Temporary Assistant Weyrlingmaster... but that's such a mouthful. Just call me M'kai, or something." Ok, that hadn't gone too badly, but he'd probably get called 'Something' now. At least he'd know who the troublemaker of the class was, then. "Today, we'll start with the importance of nutrition for dragonets and riders..."

As M'kai lectured on health and the importance of correct meat choices for growing dragonets, Futh greeted his half of the class out on the training field. Good morning, Weyrlings! I have heard very good things about your class, and I am very excited to teach you. We are supposed to start with wing and leg exercises, but those can be so boring on their own. If you wish to simply exercise, please separate out to the left and begin stretching. I will come direct you as soon as I get the rest started. For the rest - have you seen humans play keep away? The chubby blue didn't wait for a response, hopping to his feet instead. Behind him was a pile of closed sacks filled with chunks of firestone that were too small to be useful. Not too heavy, but heavy enough that they would fly straight. If you want to play the game, I need two dragons in the center, the rest in a circle. Two in the circle need sacks. Those of you on the outskirts toss the bags from one to the other, but you can't toss to the dragon next to you! The two in the middle try to catch the sacks. If a dragon in the middle catches a sack, they switch with the one who threw it. So... go ahead!

As the dragonets got their game started, M'kai finished his lecture on nutrition. "I hope everyone has good notes on that - we'll have a test next week. But for now, I hear you all have gone over the importance of straps and strap maintenance?" According to Sel'n, they had done that recently, and M'kai really wanted to move on to the practical. He'd hated lectures when he was in Training, and he didn't want to force that on anyone else. "I've got a diagram up here if any of you need something to refer to, but we'll spend the next few hours working on your first set of riding straps. Grab some leather - make sure you use extra, your dragonets are still growing - and get started!"

~~~

Attendance

Bronzeweyrling Rof'l of Kamath 4/4
Brownweyrling T'by of Nandath 1/4
Brownweyrling T'mund of Jagjith 4/4
Blueweyrling E'iah of Viveth 3/4
Blueweyrling Jazheera of Dhavalth 2/4
Blueweyrling 'Reine of Madhavath 4/4
Blueweyrling T'ris of Pravinth 3/4
Greenweyrling Kalerary of Chandath (APC)
Greenweyrling K'fuzzi of Balath 1/4
Greenweyrling Meagen of Tarath 1/4
Greenweyrling Ruliana of Amalath 3/4
Greenweyrling Sari of Upasanath 4/4
Greenweyrling Tenlie of Rajnith 4/4


One post
Two posts
Three posts
Four or more posts (You are awesome )

* First # is times attended lessons, last # is the number of lessons that have been run.

** You MUST attend lessons to graduate. Exceptions will only be made for those with special circumstances. If you approach me with a viable reason for your absence I will decide whether or not to excuse you. Make up work is permitted but it will be done on your time not mine. Please contact Sel'n with any questions.**

~~~

Tenlie
Ten managed not to doze in class, this time, taking notes on which meats and cuts were the leanest. It wasn't that Rajnith was fat, exactly, but the Green was... well, significantly rounder than many of her classmates. Ten didn't think it would be a problem, but she didn't want to push it, not in Weyrling Training. She wanted Rajnith to be safe, and healthy! Maybe a better diet would help (assuming Rajnith would let her get away with it).

For her part, the Green was sizing Futh up, eying his bulk critically. Not the most trim dragon, perhaps, but he was a teacher, and seemed capable enough. Crossing her short forelegs and settling her body in a way that Rajnith thought highlighted her best attributes, she brushed Futh's mind when he introduced himself, offering a gentle Welcome. We are all excited to have you as a teacher, as well. Buttering him up? Perhaps. It must have worked, though, since the Blue promptly offered an alternative to exercise. Ignoring the bags, she looked for her current favorite males. Pravinth, Kamath, come stand near me. I need some big, strong males to protect me from the heavy sacks!

Eavesdropping on her dragon made Tenlie chuckle as she went for the pile of leather M'kai had indicated. Making straps she wasn't worried about, although she was still having some problems with her mental connection with Rajnith. Listening to the Green wasn't hard, but speaking silently and actually entering her mind were still beyond the Weyrling. Once she started in on the leather, she quickly discovered that she needed a better awl. Hers was hopelessly dull, and this was going to take forever. Maybe someone had one they weren't using yet?

T'mund
There was no decision for Jagjith. He wasn't going to play a game if he didn't have to, not if it wouldn't provide him with any greater status among the Weyrlings. Exercises it was, so he started in on the pattern of stretches they had learned, starting with his head and working every muscle straight down to his tail. When Futh finally came back to lead them in exercises, he'd be ready.

T'mund, of course, had perfect notes on strap-making, which he ferreted out of the complicated, multi-pocket bag he always brought to lessons. He got down to work immediately, fully prepared to be the first finished, and with the best straps to boot. If only the mallet were heavier...

[neeuqtar]

'Reine took notes with the single-mindedness of one trying to avoid something even more unpleasant. He and Madhavath had gotten into their first serious argument the night before. It hadn't even started out at an argument... more an innocuous statement. But 'Reine was exhausted from tending to the blue, and Madhavath wasn't doing 'Reine any favors while getting a bath -- warbling, wooping, and generally splashing around like a possessed thing in the water, without any care for the fact that 'Reine was mostly naked and attempting to clean the blue's oily (and slippery) hide.

The memory still made 'Reine cringe, so he was doing his best to shut it out of his mind. The cheerful, obnoxious, wrong way that Madhavath had crooned about the two of them, the prettiest ladies on Pern. How he'd screamed, tired of the blue's nonsense and flaming red at being called a woman, as if there was part of him that was innately male. "You should have picked a girl if that's what you wanted! I'm male, I'm not a girl! And you aren't either!!" How he'd shouted down the dragon's protests -- "Faranth, skies and wind! Shut up! SHUT UP!! You're not a lady, or a girl, you're a MALE, a sharding blue male and it will never change!"

Madhavath hadn't talked much after that, or hummed, or warbled. The blue had stayed still for the bath, and subsequent oiling, and eaten without ado. And now here they were, the next morning, 'Reine taking notes on copper content and the necessity of bone in the diet, and how to keep a healthy balance for the blue that wouldn't talk to him. Low red meat, high green meat. Bones, muscle, fat, and viscera in proper balance to maintain a dragon's body at different ages.

The blue, meanwhile, was a storm of conflicting emotion, which 'Reine valiantly strove to keep from spilling in. Didn't 'Reine love his Madhavath? The feeling had been real-seeming, but had it been a lie? Was Madhavath a lie? The dragon was convinced that, blue hide and all, the creature within was female. There was a female blue, after all. Why should Madhavath be any different? But the dragonhealers had pronounced Madhavath male, even though the dragon was oh-so-pretty. What was so bad about being a lady that 'Reine (oh 'Reine!) wouldn't want to be a girl like Madhavath? Because 'Reine was undoubtedly pretty...

But Madhavath wanted to please 'Reine. The blue hadn't meant to make 'Reine so mad, nor to be such a bother. Weren't they in love? But 'Reine couldn't stand how Madhavath was certain of being female. Better to lie, the dragon decided. Better to make 'Reine happy. Maybe 'Reine was right. Maybe, pretty self and lady's heart, Madhavath was a... a boy. It felt distasteful, wrong. But Madhavath couldn't stand to be ostracized from 'Reine.

When Futh offered play or strengthening exercises, Madhavath was about to bound over to the games. But! Rajnith was doing that. She -- he -- paused, hoping desperately to be asked to come over by the green, or maybe by Pravnith. But the invitation did not seem to be forthcoming. Brother-Jagjith was diligently doing exercises, and Madhavath lowered his head, eyes a blue-gray color shot through with sparks of a dull yellow. With care, Madhavath went through the exercises, stretching as they had been instructed before going through the tensed-wing motions and leg motions.

In the classroom, focus switched to straps. Here, finally, was something that 'Reine could do without feeling as if he had been mistakenly selected. He didn't feel inept working with fabric, leather, or line. Or scrubbing, which he could do quite well. They had been warned about strap-making, so 'Reine had come with his own tools. Instead of following the first wave towards the tools, 'Reine dashed to the leather, selecting several hides from the pile. Slinging them over his shoulder, 'Reine made his careful way over to a corner of the floor and lay them down, then returned for the strips of pre-cut and pre-finished hide supplied, so that the weyrling wouldn't have to finish all the edges of their own straps. Thoughtful of them.

He sat down near Tenlie, then pulled out a thin notebook in which he'd sketched a couple designs for straps on passable outlines of dragons. Each left-hand page held the same image of a dragon -- some held drawings for what could only be draconic clothing -- and the opposing page was blank, for notes and pattern pieces. 'Reine compared his sketches to the one provided by M'kai, and finally settled on a happy medium. So what if his straps looked a little weird? He was used to making things extra secure in form.

Noticing Tenlie's plight, he unrolled his toolkit and pulled out one of several awls. It was wickedly sharp, and 'Reine held it over to her with a slight smile.

"Goes a lot faster if it's sharp. Just put a piece of scrap under to keep from dulling it on the stone," the blueweyrling offered, taking out some chalk and a thin stick with inch-marks ticked in the side with his other hand. When the offered awl was taken, he started marking on his hides joints, so that the straps would run through and held in place by an uncut piece of leather at the top and bottom. Fancy shmancy.

[raii]

Kamath was extremely proud to be recognized for his obvious superiority. Yes, he was a big, strong male. Pravinth, however, Pravinth was only a blue. He was no comparison to the shiniest, strongest, best bronze ever. Kamath twisted his body so that it proved his loveliness. She did think he was much better than Pravinth, yes? She was no golden beauty--which the bronze was certainly made to chase--but he did enjoy the compliments and adoration.

I am the strongest and shiniest, aren't I, Rajnith?[/i] He let his brother hear this comment. Arrogant and vain, he adored Rajnith's attention, but wanted it solely to himself. Him, and only him, was deserving of all females' attention. As if to prove his point, he stretched his hind legs, letting the lean muscles ripple under his hide. Kamath certainly was a professional at showing off.

Kamath, be nice to your brother. Rof'l's mind lightly brushed Kamath's, affectionately reprimanding him. Oh? But he is not shiny or strong like me. I am better! Even if that is so, you can't be mean. You've become incredibly vain, you know... Rof'l's tone was gentle, half-teasing, but his words rang true. Kamath ignored this comment. It was, of course, true enough, but he was completely satisfied in being his vain self. However, he would honor his Rof'l's wishes, and play nice.

Rof'l shook his head and chuckled. Kamath would grow out of this soon enough. If anything, trying to fly an older queen and failing would teach him that, or rejection of any kind. Of course, he kept this hidden from his. This was something Kamath would learn on his own, if at all. Rof'l approached the leather, grabbing a few pieces without really inspecting them. He reached for some tools next, sitting down next to T'mund. "Hi," he said, and laid out the leather before him.

It was a good texture, or so he thought. Stretchy. He looked up at the diagrams that their temporary master--M'kai--had shown them. He cut the leather, but his hand wasn't too steady, and it wasn't completely straight. Pulling it taunt, he realized that it would work, but would probably need replacing relatively soon. Still, it was far from done. He cut a bit more, this time somewhat straighter.


--------------


Hello, Master Futh. Can I play the game? And be in the middle? Upasanath stood in the center of the crowd, looking to the pale blue questioningly. She moved farther back, grabbing a sack of Firestone playfully with her teeth, dragging into the center. Unfortunately, she tripped over her tail in the process, landing on her back. For a moment, her legs tried to run in a comical way, before the clumsy green finally got to her feet. She shook her body, much like a dog would to dislodge dirt or release water.

She let out a soft croon of amusement, more to herself than anyone else, before continuing along to her original path. She turned to her blue brother, Madhaveth, who seemed a bit down. That was not good! She had to cheer him up! She walked over to the exercising blue, ignoring the boringly serious brown beside him. Hello, Madhaveth! How are you today? she called to him happily. She'd forgotten the sack, leaving it to cheer up her beloved clutchbrother. Of course, any sibling of hers deserved all of her love and kindness!

Oh, Upasanath. Have fun, will you?

Sari inspected the leathers. Several caught her eye, but only one selection was appealing to the eye and good quality. It was stretchy and smooth, strong and soft. Besides, it was a soft, pretty color. She took some tools, picking the sharpest she could fine. She carefully measured out the length, marking it. She sliced strips of hide, making sure each cut was perfect. Only the best for her Upasanath.

[Ruby]

Maybe Rajnith should have extended her invitation - She wanted all of her males, not just some. She'd assumed the ones without an explicit invitation would come on their own, but apparently now. Jagjith she'd given up on long ago, of course (what a crashing bore that one was), but she thought she had Madhavath in her clutches. Then again, she wasn't 100% certain Madhavath counted as male, either... None the less, she felt the hesitation and filed the information away for later use. Males in attendance were certainly best, but she would not discriminate against any dragon that looked male. Next time, perhaps; now there were Bronzes that needed her attention.

Very strong and very shiny, indeed. You won't let any of those heavy, heavy sacks hit me, will you? she simpered in Kamath's direction, sidling over so that she was slightly behind the Bronze. She'd be safe back here...

Futh surveyed the split, huffing slightly. If he had been given the choice to play as a Weyrling... but he hadn't of course, and perhaps these were a more serious bunch. Some seemed to be, at least. Ok, Upasanath, you're starting in the middle! Maybe just one dragon in the center for now, we're a little short today. If anyone changes their mind, and does want to play, just jump in to the circle! Yes, the last bit had been aimed at Madhavath, but Jagjith was included, as well. The exercising dragons seemed to have everything under control, so Futh trotted over to be opposite Rajnith and Kamath, crouching in a comically overdone 'ready' stance. Upasanath? Upasanath! We're starting now, I've got a sack. All we need is you! Futh called, retrieving the abandoned firestone sack. Once she came back to the center, Futh was planning to heave the sack far over her head, but somewhat short, so Rajnith and Kamath would have to scramble to catch it. There was no point to the game if they didn't have to work for it!

Greetings, Madhavath, Jagjith offered solemnly, transitioning smoothly from a pose with wings and tail held stiffly away from his body to a tucked position, and back again. I did not realize you were one to pick the sensible choice over the silly one. I am glad to have your company, the Brown added, realizing it was true. He hadn't spent much time with any of his clutchsiblings besides Viveth, to be truthful, and Viveth was a difficult dragon at best. Of course, Jagjith would never have tagged his warbling, deluded Blue sibling as an easy dragon to get along with before this, but Madhavath had just unwittingly won Jagjith's respect. Yay?

Back in the classroom, Ten was shamelessly examining 'Reine's book while the other Weyrling retrieved more leather. Of course, she was attempting to work on her straps, too, but 'Reine's drawings were so much more interesting. It was an awl in her face that got her attention back - with a slight jump, she accepted it and returned the Blueweyrling's smile. To be honest, 'Reine freaked Hold- and Craft-bred Tenlie out a little bit (he looked so much like a girl! But he roomed with T'ris, he had to be a boy, right?), but she was willing to put just about anything aside if someone was nice enough. "Oh - thanks!" she said, grabbing a piece of scrap to put under her work. "Hey, the sketches you've got over there. Those are really good! Are you... Weaver-trained, or something?" she guessed, trying to snag another glance. Tailor-trained, maybe. Seemed like 'Reine would be a good person to have around, this lesson.

T'mund tried really, really hard not to raise an eyebrow at Rof'l. He about half-succeeded, helped along by the fact that he couldn't really raise just one, so the Brownweyrling ended up looking simply surprised as opposed to truly hostile. Jagjith had given up on actively hating Kamath - too much effort, no return, all sorts of unnecessary distraction - but he still didn't much like his Bronze brother. That one didn't deserve his shine. T'mund knew that Jagjith was why his initial reaction to Rof'l was so negative (thanks to the books on Dragonhealing he'd borrowed from the archives to supplement what Tiramnet had left for him, it had to be her), but he didn't have to like it. With an audible breath he straightened up, attempting a very awkward half-smile in the other Weyrling's direction. "Hi," he replied. Then, without anything more to say, T'mund hunched back over his work, ignoring Rof'l once again. He worked for a while in silence, sneaking glances at the nearby Weyrling.

"You're doing it wrong." Blinking, T'mund snapped his mouth shut on the end of his sentence. Yeah, he'd been thinking that, but he had been trying not to be a know it all. Too late for that. "I mean... that's not what I meant. If you hold the knife like this, it's easier to cut, and it will come out straighter," he said, showing Rof'l how he was holding his knife. It was a slightly different grip with the first finger bent more than Rof'l's was, but really, the grip was pretty much the same. T'mund's straps were coming along nicely so far, though, so maybe it would make a difference?

Pulling his long, red hair into a tail at the nape of his neck, M'kai made the rounds for close to an hour, nodding and correcting a grip or a pattern here and there. "If anyone has questions on anything you've learned so far, feel free to ask at any time." This wasn't going so badly, he decided, stopping beside Sari and taking a look at her work. "That looks nice, very straight. You've got a lucky dragon, that's for sure." With a smile for the Greenweyrling, he returned to the front of the class, taking a look at everyone's progress. "Alright, we'll finish these tomorrow, you've had plenty of time to work on them now. Please pack up carefully - you can leave the straps in here, but they've got to be on your peg on the wall or on the floor just below it, the other class has the room later today. When you're done, follow me outside. We're going to meet the dragons and continue the lesson out there."

[neeuqtar]

I am... um, tired! Madhavath replied to Upasanath, desperately seeking an excuse to why on earth shh-- he would be doing exercises, instead of playing with such a pretty, pretty sister as Upasanath. But you should play, the dragon encouraged. I am fine here with brother-Jagjith, oh YES I am~ A touch of the sing-song came back to Madhavath's voice, encouraged by the tone of voice that Jagjith had taken. Yes, yes, maybe Reine-love would like Madhavath better if only the dragon was more like Jagjith. More like a male should be. Like Madhavath was supposed to be, because Madhavath was blue.

This is what males do, Madhavath said gravely to Jagjith. Males are strong and sensible, and not playing at being pretty. The dragon shifted stretches, muscles that hadn't been used for strength before getting used now. The dragon could feel unhappy muscles trembling faintly; it was going to hurt later. But Madhavath wanted to make 'Reine happy, and this was what would make 'Reine happy, Madhavath was certain.

"Not... exactly," 'Reine said to Tenlie, casually shifting the notebook over so the other weyrling could see. He moved quickly and precisely, and before long he had the pieces drawn out and had started cutting them out carefully. "I was, um..." He tried to think of some way to say 'whore' without actually, well, saying it. Nothing came to mind, and Madhavath was so intent on being good that 'Reine didn't want to bother the dragon to dredge up euphemisms from songs. "I was a peg boy," he finally offered. "I've done some seamstress work, and some specialty leather. There wasn't much time for idleness on the Valiant, and I preferred stitchwork to scrubbing."

By the end of the hour, 'Reine was done with the basic work -- his straps were all cut out, and holes punched where stitches needed to go. He'd even managed to get a couple joinings sewn together. The rest would be the work of perhaps another hour or two, and he was enjoying Tenlie's company. So strange, to be making female friends...