[Flora Weyrlings - 7] - Flight!

[glamourie]

The idea of him teaching anyone was comical. The fact that he was stupid enough to offer to take the entire lesson from F'rah was a touch humiliating. His logic, at the time, was that he'd be there anyway to help with the lesson (awkward), so why not handle the entire lesson? Part of that was simply that Ka'rys didn't play well with others, but more stemmed from the fact that he, simply put, did not want to waste people's time. If he had to be at the class to help check straps as a guest speaker, F'rah could be doing something more important. Whatever it was that F'rah happened to do when he wasn't handling weyrling lessons. The man dealt with a bunch of children/young adults on a regular basis. He deserved a break. Right? Right!

Ka'rys chanted that as a mantra in his head as he sat on top of the desk at the front of the weyrling barracks classroom. He had his legs curled under him in a cross-legged style, and he was leaning back against his palms. He'd been tempted to wait outside, since the class would migrate out there anyway, but... no; they were accustomed to meeting in the barracks, and he'd do just that. Besides, it gave him time to assess who all was in the class. It was strange to imagine that this class was the one that Ciceroth sired. Very strange, really, and somewhat... amusing. He was not familiar with any of the weyrlings from the class other than Savitri, though. The thought of her made his fingers moved down to pick at the very dark brown shirt he wore. Cursed female. She'd better be happy that he'd bothered. Between her and Shmee criticising his wardrobe, he felt quite teamed-up on.

Ciceroth? Ciss? ... Ciss?

No response.

CICEROTH!!

Outside the barracks, Ciceroth jumped in surprise, waking up from a sound sleep at the sudden burst of sound through his mind. His eyes whirled rapidly in confusion and he flapped his wings repeatedly before recognizing the source. And then he groaned. Why did His feel the need to wake him up? Just because RysHis had to be awake at ridiculous hours didn't mean that he did. Grumbling, Ciceroth uncurled from the awkward position he'd settled himself in. He ignored the fact that he'd only been asleep for under a candlemark and that the light flaring over the horizon meant that it was time to get up anyway. Only a little earlier than usual, but he didn't want to be up. Complain, complain, complain. He stretched out, flaring his large wings as wide as they would go, and then flopped over. He was awake, see? Awake! No need for yelling or repeating himself or --

You are very noisy sometimes! he complained, adding, What is it you needed? It's not time for me to get up, you haven't even assembled the class yet!

And how, o' bronze one, do you intend for me to do that without your help?

Oh. Right. If dragons could blush, Ciceroth probably would have. As it was, he fidgeted, eyes whirling meekly, though His couldn't see it. Talking to other humans was awkward. They were not His. Still, it had to be done and he recognized necessity. When he called, it was to the dragons and their rider equivalents, just in case one half of the pair was less inclined to listen than the other, Junior Weyrlings, it is time for your lesson. Wake up and assemble in the barracks classroom, please.

[kysseh]

A loud yelp echoed from one of the junior weyrling rooms as Savitri fell off the edge of her cot and made contact with the floor. Silence immediately followed for a handful of seconds, and then the young woman let loose with a whispered stream of curses about her own clumsiness as she got to her feet, dusting herself off with rough efficiency. She had been awake quite long enough to be bathed, full of food, and ready to face the world. They had the much-anticipated lesson of first flight coming up, after all, and she had been fussing over her riding straps nonstop. The weyrlingmaster would be hard-pressed to find a better maintained set of straps. Though, she did have the unlucky lot to have to make new ones more frequently than her fellow weyrlings with the rate that Hepaticath was growing.

She had finished with her riding straps and had been moving to get up from her sitting position to try them on her relaxing dragon when something went... wrong. She had gotten her feet tangled in the straps and fallen right off the side of the bed, and even now as she remembered the incident, she was burning with humiliation. How clumsy she was! She carefully untangled the straps and made sure there was no damage done. Thankfully, the only dent was too her wounded pride, and she moved over to Hepaticath, glancing over to make sure she had not awakened her roommate, Roshya, with her clumsiness, her expression apologetic. Rarely was she so inconsiderate, but her temper got away with her on some very, very rare occasions. Her own ineptitude fell into that category.

She had just reached Hepaticath's side when the summons came out for weyrling lessons, and she froze at the odd familiarity of the mental tones. It was not Styth, though this mental voice reminded her somehow of... Ka'rys? This one was lower, though, and not quite so biting around the edges. She would have remained confused for longer, but Hepaticath's soft croon and the quick whirl of her eyes roused her suspicions, which her mindmate soon confirmed. PlaymateMine summons us. We must go to lessons. You go. I will go keep my canine playmate company.

Canine playmate? Savitri asked in bemusement as the gold heaved herself to her feet and made for the door without a second glance. Hepaticath was only amused in response to that and simply hopped her way down the hallway, passing by the classrooms as she went. The open door got her attention, and she lowered her head a bit to see properly through the door, crooning quietly at Ciceroth's where he sat on the desk inside. Then she was off and moving again, and her bronze playmate would have been well-advised to not flop over had he known she was coming. She came to a skidding halt beside him and inelegantly flopped herself right across him--not across his wings, of course, as those were easily damaged--in a manner that spoke volumes of her trust. She liked him. He was a good playmate. You should not be so lazy, CanineMine! We are to fly today!

Savitri had to put on her boots and appropriate attire for lessons before she picked up her straps to follow. Her light hair was tied back in a neat bun at the base of her neck, a bun that looked deceptively loose but would probably take an extreme force of nature to move. She had secured it there tightly in nervous anticipation. Nothing would get in the way of them flying today if things went smoothly. At least, that was the plan until she reached the classroom doorway and paused upon the realization that their teacher... was not the usual. One eyebrow arched gracefully at the sight of her bronzerider... friend? interest? pain-in-the-rump?... seated cross-legged on the desk up front. His shirt elicited a smile from her, at least, a smile that brightened up her eyes as well.

"Good morning, Ka'rys. Or... weyrleader." She needed to set a good example for the other weyrlings, after all. "I'm guessing from F'rah's absence that you're taking over our lesson for today?" It was largely a rhetorical question, and she carefully set her straps at one of the desks and then made her way up front to greet him, smiling quite cheerfully. "You look very nice. May I ask the occasion?" she inquired mildly, reaching out to adjust a collar that quite obviously did not need fixing. Was she enjoying looking him over? Certainly. Her smile probably showed that, even as she withdrew her hands so that he knew she was fussing just for the sake of bothering him. Then she swept right back to her seat and made herself comfortable, waiting for her classmates to arrive. Oh... this would be an interesting day, for sure.

[Ruby]

As'lin was making an effort to be on time. He really, really hated being late to lessons, but being on time had never really been his strong suit. As a child, he'd spent most of his time doing whatever he wanted whenever he wanted, and that had worked out fine for oh, say eighteen years. But now... well, he always felt like he was interrupting, and he had learned to hate that feeling. It wasn't like you could fail out of Weyrling lessons, but As'lin liked it when people LIKED him, and he didn't like being a nuisance. It had actually been Stillith who had pointed out that being late did make him a nuisance, but As'lin didn't hold it against the blue. It was the truth, and the bluerider was determined to change that.

So they'd been up early, Stillith and As'lin both. He'd eaten breakfast and oiled Stillith's itchy patches, leaving enough time to clean up if he spilled on himself like he'd spilled before. It was fairly common, he hated to admit. No spills, though, so he checked his straps again, untangling a few lines, then laying them carefully at the foot of his bed, ready to leave. Not wanting to disturb M'kier, he curled up at the head of his bed, taking out a piece of paper to sketch a little...

The next thing he knew, an unfamiliar and somewhat awkward voice echoed through his head, waking him up. The voice was unfamiliar to As'lin, but Stillith seemed to instinctively know it, although he said nothing to his Rider about the caller's identity. It wasn't F'rah, though, nor Laurie and Reysalth, nor Aryna and her Brown- no, this was someone new. Slinging his straps over his shoulder, As'lin reached out to pat Stillith's side, saying, Time to go, Stil. Ready to fly?

The blue simply sent his rider happy thoughts, too excited to form whole words. You sound like a 'mandyr, silly. Where's Zora, speaking of?

At hearing his name, the Brown firelizard flitted into sight, through the window. He had a bit of fur hanging off his chin. He was eating, Mine, and asked not to be disturbed, Stillith translated as Zora cocked his head in annoyance.

"By all means, go back to eating, Zora. Stay here when you're done- we'll be at lessons. And you've got something on your chin." The brown chirped loftily, as if to indicate that the fur was there on purpose, and flickered between without so much as a goodbye. Shaking his head, As'lin let Stillith lead the way out, heading for their usual lesson room. Hopefully there wouldn't be another pop essay- As'lin hated writing, and certainly hadn't improved at all since last time.

As'lin ducked in front of Stillith as the pair made the final turn before the classroom, wanting to precede his dragon in and find out who the new instructor was. That, however, may have been a mistake. As'lin felt his cheeks brightening as he stopped the doorway, silent in shock. Savitri was a quick identification- that girl was prompter than a dragon for his feeding! The other man, though, required a quick reading of knots, and at first As'lin thought he might have gotten it wrong, considering the intimate position the mystery Rider and Savitri were in, her fixing his collar like some sort of Weyrmate. This couldn't be Ka'rys, the Weyrleader, could it? How could she be so familiar with him? As Savitri took a seat, As'lin had to quash a sudden feeling of jealousy, although he couldn't be sure if it was Ka'rys familiarity with Savitri or vice versa that triggered the reaction.

Hopefully before either of them could notice him standing like a dolt in the doorway, As'lin cleared his throat and started moving again, sketching an awkward little bow and greeting their new teacher, "Weyrleader Ka'rys. I'm As'lin, of Stillith." That, at least, was quite clear- Stillith had come quickly into the room, rustling his wings at Hepaticath in greeting and dropping his jaw in a draconic grin. Hepaticath's could do whatever she liked, Stillith wasn't going to be jealous because she was friends with the Weyrleader. His was a silly hormone riddled adolescent, and Stillith- still pre-adolescent, as far as Dragons went- had no time to waste on his stupidity. As'lin took a desk quickly, not even paying attention to where he sat, still trying to figure out what on Pern had made him so jealous. Savitri knowing, even being friendly with the Weyrleader? Certainly, that was an enviable position. But was it that simple, or was it more?

[Kisha-Ra]

A thump and a yelp made Roshya jump, which since she was still in bed trying to work up the necessary enthusiasm to get up was more like a jerk than a jump. The blueweyrling cautiously opened her eyes enough that she could see through her lowered lashes and took a peek around the room. It appeared her roommate had been fussing over her riding straps (again!) and had somehow tangled herself up and fallen off her bunk. Roshya deemed it wise to maintain the pretence of sleep at this time and let her eyelids completely close again.

Roshya let her thoughts wander as she listened to Savitri pick herself up and untangle herself. Lessons in flying were soon to take place, she recalled. Roshya very much anticipated this lesson, as did Sheyath, though not so much that she would get up and check her gear, which had been fine last night, right now. Though it occurred to her that maybe Savitri did have reason to fuss over her straps more, they were newer than Roshya’s since Hepaticath grew a lot more than Sheyath, who was still among the smallest dragons, stiff leather would probably not be comfortable for either of them. Roshya’s next thought didn’t get time to form as an unfamiliar dragon’s voice called the class to lessons.

Roshya tumbled out of her cot in a not to tidy manner and pulled on a sturdy pair of trousers and a reasonable shirt for the day’s lesson, it was probably cold high up in the air where she hoped to be soon. With practiced speed her disordered chestnut hair was braided tightly, she still hadn’t decided if she should cut it. Sheyath bestirred himself as Roshya tugged on her boots and gathered up her riding gear and his straps in one arm. The blue gave his rider and enquiring look, not needing to say a word. Of course Sheyath. Go and sun yourself a little, I expect the lesson will move outside after everyone arrives.

Roshya hurried along to the classroom and seated herself near the door, ready to dash out as soon as she was allowed, and observed current events with a raised brow, so Savitri was familiar enough with the weyrleader to speak casually to him? In answer to that mental question Sheyath sent an image of Hepticath sprawled over a bronze dragon from what seemed a safely distant viewpoint. Interesting…


Rinagth sat alert, waiting for her chosen to be called to the lesson, it was uppermost in J’on’s mind that today they would fly. Rinagth was so excited by this prospect that she couldn’t keep still, as soon as her tail stopped snaking across the floor her wings started twitching or her talons tapped on the floor. As normal with every movement bursts of golden yellow flashed on her hide and vanished again. She was soooo clever; she was going to very good at flying, much, much better than any gold!

J’on’s fingers worked down his straps, a nervous reaction to the thought that someone else would inspect them before he was allowed to fly with Rinagth, The boy looked up at his dragon for a moment. Excited Rina? he inquired teasingly of his fidgeting beast. Excited bug. Triangle excited, Triex! Wraith lifted her head and her wings as if the question was meant for her. Rinagth turned and glared at the salamandyr, if it wouldn’t upset Hers so much Rinagth would have eaten that green nuisance long ago. Quiet you! That was my question.[/color] Rinagth shot the private scolding to Wraith before answering J’on. Yes, yes, I want to fly with you. We will be the best fliers in the whole Weyr! I will be much better than Hepaticath. You believe me don’t you? No one will catch us![/color]

J’on Didn’t get time to answer Rinagth’s somewhat repetive boasts as the call for lessons arrived. Rinagth vanished out of the door before J’on could get up. He exchanged a wry glance with his roommate as the green tail disappeared around the doorframe. ‘Looks like Rina’s gone without me.’ He commented blandly as he moved around the room to get his stuff together. Wraith scrried up his leg and into his jacket pocket with a cheerful cry of Excited! apparently the salamandyr was attending the lesson too, J’on paid her hardly any mind he was already rushing after his dragon.

Rinagth walked into the classroom and settled herself by one of the desks, ignoring the fact that she was getting more than a bit too big to do so, and waited for her rider to arrive, which he did in a hurry nearly tripping over a dangling bit of leather. J’on just moved to sit down obediently where Rinagth had chosen. ‘J’on of Rinagth, sir.’ He introduced himself somewhat breathlessly before dropping into the chair.

[glamourie]

Crooning. Ka'rys glanced up from his spot sitting curled up on top of the table just in time to see a flash of gold brilliance disappearing further down the hallway. Hepaticath; Savitri. He briefly considered warning Ciceroth that she was on her way, but decided against it. The bronze was determined to sleep when he needed to be awake. He deserved anything he got and more. Besides, Ciceroth took an extreme delight in embarrassing him. It was only right for the favor to be returned... eventually. The bronzerider sniffed slightly; it wouldn't be long before the weyrlings started filtering in, and he'd need to be focused on them and not the great big bronze lump outside.

Sure as the tides changed, Savitri was the first to arrive, and he turned to offer her a slightly bemused smile. If they were alone, he would likely have admitted that the shirt was for her benefit; she made such a fuss about looking presentable that he was trying to meet her half-way in compromise. She promised she wouldn't make herself sick anymore if he took efforts to dress better. He didn't make promises he had no intentions of keeping very often. Thus, he was keeping his part of the deal, and he picked the color based on what she mentioned liking. It looked ridiculous on him, in his not-so-humble opinion, but if it made her happy (as the smile clearly indicated) then it was good enough. Maybe he would get used to it over time? Well, that was his hope, at least. That or he'd end up ignoring what he wore and just let the females in his life dress him, as Savitri and Shmee seemed convinced was their job. Goldriders!

"Weyrlingmaster F'rah," Ka'rys correctly softly. Titles were not a big deal to him normally, and in fact he typically detested the use of his, but for the sake of the lesson and setting a good example for the rigid ones, he would tolerate - and expect it. He tilted his head to the side at her question and the corners of his lips twitched up into a smile. He was flattered at the compliment, and it showed.. slightly. But most of his feelings were pushed aside with a simple and semi-impersonal response. "I keep the promises I make, Savitri." Best not to make it look obvious that he knew her outside of the class. He didn't want to look as if he was playing favorites. He wasn't. Outside of a classroom setting he would doubtlessly have elaborated on what he meant, and most likely have teased Savitri about the color. Professionalism was important, though, and besides, he wanted to set a good example for once.

Thus when the next student arrived, he gestured for Savitri to take a seat and turned his full attention onto As'lin, who obviously wanted their attention; one did not often clear their throat so pointedly unless they were trying to get acknowledgment. "Hello, As'lin of Stillith," he replied softly, his gaze following the boy as he took a seat. He looked... distracted. Hmm. Ka'rys watched him for a moment, then glanced back at Savitri almost questioningly. He didn't ask; he wouldn't ask in front of anyone else.

Outside, Ciceroth half-jumped as he was suddenly tackled by a golden blur. His eyes whirled and he looked up and over at her before rumbling in amusement. Silly Hepaticath. He relaxed against the ground, not remotely bothered that he had a weyrling sprawled over him. She was not quite big enough to hurt him yet. At full growth she would not be able to lay on him that way; that much was obvious from how large she already was. But there was still half a turn to go of growing and she was small enough that it was not uncomfortable for him. For a bronze he was on the large side, after all, and not very easily injured. He noted, too, the care she took to watch his wings, and crooned his appreciation. Little claws were still dangerous.

Yes, you fly today, but not on my back! And the others have to wake up. Are they always so slow to rise? Exactly who was he to talk? He took forever to wake up. That much was obvious from the fact that he was still not awake. At least, not fully. It did not stop him, however, from lavishing affection on the little gold. She was one of the few dragons he was close enough to that he felt no shame in his obvious fondness. Just because Ka'rys was determined not to show bias didn't mean he was; not before the lesson even began.

A few beats passed, and two more arrivals came. He nodded to the silent one, her name lost on him; bluerider, though. Hmm. Then he turned and nodded to the greenpair that arrived. Silent greeting, but greeting nonetheless. It looked like only those four would be there. Which meant punishment for the rest. Not his problem. If they wanted to miss their first experiments with flight, then so be it.

"Hi," he offered by way of greeting to the entire class before swinging his legs over the side of the desk. "I'm Ka'rys. As most of you have guessed, Weyrlingmaster F'rah will not be present today. I don't know how he normally goes about classes, and I tend to feel it's best to handle things my own way anyway. That being said, today the primary focus of our lesson is on flight. But before you can fly, your dragons and your gear have to be secured and ready. In other words, your straps have to be properly maintained and cared for. I'm sure that F'rah has covered this for you, so instead of telling you how to do that, I'm going to ask that everyone filter out of the barracks and get your dragons prepared and geared up - so I can check your straps myself. Don't focus so much on speed right now as diligence. Let's move outside - where everyone can fit." And he could hide behind Ciceroth. "Anyone who is late can join us later."

[kysseh]

Of course he kept his promises, and she was quite delighted with the result. Savitri relaxed herself into her seat, taking the rebuke and dismissal in the spirit in which they were given. They--Weyrleader Ka'rys especially--had to set a good example. She brushed a bit of dust off her leggings, shifting her booted feet on the floor as As'lin not-so-subtly snagged Ka'rys' attention to introduce himself. One of her eyebrows arched at the sight of As'lin's blushing, wondering what the source for it was. He had not embarrassed himself until he started blushing for some unexplainable reason. Boys were incredibly odd at times, and the two males in the room thus far--one man and one boy, she allowed--were no exception.

She flicked J'on and Roshya welcoming smiles, adding an extra once of apology for her roommate for the ruckus she had made just a short while before. She was not that clumsy very often, but those rare occasions were usually spectacular. Just her luck, she supposed. Her green eyes flicked toward the doorway in the hopes of seeing another few weyrlings entering, a bit annoyed and disappointed when none seemed to appear. As'lin appeared to have chosen himself a seat, and then Ka'rys started, and she was forced to pay attention instead of silently agreeing with Hepaticath that a few weyrlings needed to be tied up and led to lessons from now on. At least those of the weyrling class that had taken it upon themselves to be punctual would get more attention.

It was hard to contain her excitement at the prospect of flying, and she doubted that any of the others were less enthusiastic than she. Finally! It had only taken them over half a Turn to get to this point, and she was hard-pressed to be patient. Digesting Ka'rys' instructions, she nodded and then made a quick glance around the room. No one seemed to be jumping up to lead the way, so she got to her feet to set a good example. She couldn't resist lingering by As'lin for half a second, though, just to express her mild annoyance. "Good morning to you too, As'lin. Dare I ask what I did to not merit any sort of greeting?" It became quite clear that the question was rhetorical for a brief second later, she was out the door, straps over her arm, and headed outside.

Hepaticath was lounging happily atop her bronze playmate but was more than eager to get up when she saw Hers on the approach with the riding straps. The weyrling rolled clumsily off her playmate and crooned in apology for startling him, watching him with calm blue-green eyes. They are not so slow! Just busy. she countered, though she nudged him more urgently to get up. You have to wake up too. You can not teach us while lying down. And hello, Sheyath... Stillith... Rinagth. No one could ever accuse Hepaticath of being impolite when it came to her classmates. She enjoyed greeting each and every one of them... even the difficult ones.

A mental prod got her attention, though, and she lowered her neck for Savitri to start working on the straps. The whirls of blue and green were quicker now, though those were the only indication of the young gold's impatience. Calm was she, and calm, she had learned, meant that the straps were secured faster. Savitri was skilled with them, after a few months of flying around with that snappy green Tanith, but Hepaticath's straps had to be bigger. Already the little gold had outgrown her green teacher-friend, and Hers was struggling to get used to that.

"Thank you for holding still," SavitriHers was remarking aloud as she tightened the last of the straps before going over them for a doublecheck... and then a third round of paranoid fussing. Was she a bit compulsive about that? Yes, of course. Then again, she had had the torture of flying on an agile green who had a tendency to throw into random barrel rolls. Savitri knew Hepaticath could hardly do that, but such habits of multiple checks were hard to break. She finished in a decent amount of time and turned around to face their teachers and wait, though she had a feeling she would be among the last to finish anyways. The other three didn't have Hepaticath's size or her own compulsions to deal with.

[Ruby]

As'lin was preparing to zone out for a long lecture about the dangers of flying and all that nonsense- weren't dragons MEANT to fly? How much trouble could they get in to? But the Weyrleader was surprisingly brief. When he told them to strap up and meet him outside, well... both As'lin and Stillith had to forcibly restrain their mouths from falling open in joy and surprise. They would fly soon, and there would be no lecture beforehand! Both were incredibly eager to see how they would do in the sky, As'lin especially. His previous runner riding experiances made him both confident and worried- would it be similar? Much different? Had he learned things incorrectly, which he would have to unlearn? Well, all would be answered soon enough.

He busied himself with sorting out Stillith's straps once again as he saw Savitri heading by his desk, but to no avail. She stopped anyway, commenting on his lack of a hello. Opening his mouth and looking up to explain, As'lin had to shake his head. Savitri was already gone, leading the pack (as usual) to wherever they needed to go. With a sigh, he levered himself out of his chair, and followed the Goldrider outside, trying to catch up so they could have a word before they were outside under Ka'rys' gaze again.

No such luck, though. She was already getting Hepaticath's straps on when As'lin got Stillith up beside her. Hello, Hepaticath! Stil replied to her greeting, none of His' silly nonsense would keep him from greeting the Gold. Who is the big one? A friend? he continued, his mindvoice taking on a much meeker tone as he spoke of Ciceroth. Stillith, still a little undersized for his age, wasn't used to being around dragons as big as the Bronze, even if it was his sire, and it made the Blue shy.

As'lin started settling Stillith into his straps, trying to work around to the side that was closest to Hepaticath whenever Savitri was between their two dragons. Finally, he looked over his shoulder, still tightening a strap, and tried to explain. "Sorry I didn't say hi, Savitri, I just wasn't ready to see Ka'rys sitting in F'rah's place. That's all. He's... well, he's the Weyrleader! I've only seen him from a distance. So good morning," he finished, shooting her a smile if she cared to look. If not... well, they could work it out later. Now was not the time.

Once Stillith's straps were on and checked to As'lin's specifications (not nearly as high as Savitri's, which might not have been a good thing...), he went around tot he front of his Blue, and leaned against a foreleg. No way was Stillith even close to Hepaticath's size, nor would he ever be, but shards, As'lin's dragon had gotten big fast. As'lin gave Stillith an affectionate, excited pat, and Stillith snorted in his hair. As'lin wasn't super happy about that, but who cared? Today they would fly!