Discussing Future Designs [S'kef]

B'jin puffed out a sigh, and brushed a hand over his face, frowning as he considered the remainder of the trip from the shady side of the hut he was standing against, and the Acting Weyrleader's hut. He refused to give S'kef so much acknowledgement as to let the man claim Weyrleadership; that required him to fly the Weyrwoman's gold, and since Tyrrisath had gotten fat and lazy and opted to not even bother flying Krypth any more, B'jin felt S'kef was being particularly obnoxious about his position. There were several couples now, all of whom were linked up to a gold dragon and as a result, far more worthy to claim the rank of Weyrleader - B'jin was honestly shocked people weren't causing a fuss about it! With Okalinath being won by the same bronze twice now, and Krypth apparently favouring M'bal's bronze Gugaroth, there were two men clearly in a position to cause trouble. R'nya's bronze winning the latest maiden gold only added to the fuel. Why were these men so happy to quietly follow along in S'kef's wake?

B'jin's nose scrunched as he saw Tsuen making her way back to her own hut. Well, that could obviously be the most blatant reason. Tsuen had her goldriders firmly in hand, and no one was quite willing to risk seeing how far the crazy old bat would go if she were truly pushed. While her tantrums were certainly more amusing than dangerous, the woman was getting to the point where she was bypassing amusing, and going straight into outright insane. To push her too far... the woman didn't need any real power as far as the politics of the Weyr was concerned; she was a wild, dangerous feline and the Weyr were acting as one to avoid her going on a rabid, child murding spree in a fit of outrage.

As the woman vanished, B'jin turned his gaze back on the brownrider's hut. Well, he wasn't going to get anything acomplished by standing there, despite the fact that where he was standing was both shady and S'kef free, and his end goal was not. B'jin sighed again, looking up at the sky irritibly. The heat had been going strong for several days now, and the greenrider was not coping with it well. He'd finally hacked off a good chunk of his long, blonde hair so it barely touched his shoudlers now, and all that was left was pulled back into a high pony-tail, and wrapped into a knot. A few stray whisps would have been floating around his face, if they werent damp from the wet cloth resting around the base of his neck occassionally being wiped over his face. Instead, they clung limply to the side of his face.

Finally deciding that he couldn't procrastinate any more, the greenrider stepped out of the shade, his nose once more scrunching up as the sun immediately beat down on him with a vicious bite. He was going to end up so sunburned! Rolling his shoulders irritibly and wishing his shirt were lighter - or, perhaps, that he was willing to run around without it on - B'jin finished the trip with purposeful strides at S'kef's door. He didn't bother to look to see if Tyrrisath were around, or if the dragon were else where. Larrikith had assured him that S'kef would be within his home and so that was where B'jin was sure he would be. Larrikith could be a bitch, but he could tell by the way she was anxious and slightly prickly that she was expecting trouble and had not lied about S'kef's location.

B'jin's fist wrapped on the door, the greenrider allowing just the smallest of pauses before calling out; "Sir! I'd like to discuss my Weyrling class with you. Please."

Tyrrisath's snout appeared overhead as the brown dragon peered down at B'jin's approaching form. The creature quickly informed S'kef of the visitor preparing to knock on the door before slithering down from the roof himself, coiling discreetly beside the hut and eyeing B'jin with his red-hot eyes. It had been a while, hadn't it? Tyrrisath couldn't quite remember how long, but it had been a while indeed. He wondered if anything would come of it, and while he somewhat doubted it, he was happy to position himself for potential door-blocking as he watched the door open. It was rare for prey to approach predator so freely. Was B'jin perhaps stupid?

S'kef was not quite in such a predatory mindset, but it did both amuse and satisfy him to hear B'jin call him sir. He opened the door a moment later, having almost reached it before B'jin spoke. "Weyrlings? Certainly," S'kef said, deceptively cheerful. He flashed B'jin one of those timeless smiles, just like he always made sure to bring when D'ren was around. It wasn't exactly fake, either. S'kef was genuinly amused, and B'jin's little visit was a nice break in the monotony of the day. S'kef didn't have any desire to fuck with the man too much anymore, that old infatuation having run it's course, but shards if he hadn't won!

"Come on in and have a seat," S'kef said, pushing the door further open and motioning for the greenrider to enter. Flit sat on his shoulder, cheeping with amusement. Her bonded was so happy! S'kef gave the tiny green a slight pay before closing the door. Ttell me if Jai shows up S'kef requested. He figured J'ver would be unhappy to know of B'jin in their hut, but he could suck it up...nothing illicit was going on, and nor would it, though S'kef would be hard pressed not to fall into his old habits of tormenting the idiot greenrider for the fun of it. Better to keep it professional, but he could gloat a little bit at the least.

I take it the door can remain open? Tyrrisath inquired.

Yes. I'll tell you if that changes, though

The brown greed silently and relaxed, curling up to nap. Maybe Rila would come lie with him. That would be nice. The dragon's pleasant mood came as much from surprise as anything, though...How pleasant, for  S'kef to be so merciful. This was what mercy felt like, right?

Only when B’jin was safely in the building did Larrikith descend, the mossy green dragon dropping out of between with wings full of cold air as she flared them over the hut, making the most of Tyrrisath’s recent exit. The little green landed lightly, coiling up like a fat feline, her eyes distrustful and wary as she peered over the edge of the hut at the far bigger brown, her nose crinkling so her teeth were just barely visible. Her nostrils flared as she snorted at him, but no words were spoken – she wouldn’t lower herself to such standards!

B’jin relaxed slightly at the familiar expression on S’kef’s face, pleased the brownrider was falling into the usual roles they filled when they had been unlucky enough to work together with D’ren. He wasn’t foolish enough, of course, to believe that that would mean he was entirely safe – their entire working relationship with D’ren had involved countless points in time where S’kef had made snide remarks, carefully phrased or disguised so only B’jin would understand them. B’jin, however, wasn’t in the mood to actually play games (it was far too hot, and he was sick of the heatwave) and he wanted this done so he could spend the remainder of the evening down at the lake with R’nd.

The greenrider took the indicated seat without any particular fuss, sitting back in it though his feet were casually placed; there was a relaxed air about him that belied the natural readiness to flee. S’kef might be playing nice, and B’jin might be in no mood to bait him, but he was not in any mood to die, either, and things like crossing his legs or ankle would hardly be ideal should the need arise to flee. That, in addition to the heat and B’jin’s desire to enjoy the remainder of the evening, prompted him to get right to the point of his visit, which was far from casual or social.

“My group has just started their eighteenth month of training. I have nothing Weyrling based left to teach them. Due to… circumstances,” he didn’t bother to linger on the unpleasantness of the execution, “they ended up learning a lot of it in a shorter span than typical.” He leaned forward just slightly, sitting up more. A frown furrowed B’jin’s eyebrows and he pursed his lips for a moment. “I have complete documentations on each of them at home,” well, at R’nd’s, but B’jin wasn’t in the mood to dance around that, either. “Including recommendations for which Wing they’ll fit into; I could continue teaching them for another six months, but it will be redundant and a waste of time. I’d rather take on another class, since Krypth has just clutched, and both Okalinath and Aradissicath will be clutching before long.” There really weren’t enough riders interested in putting up with grouchy Northerners or arrogant Southerners to have him teaching an educated class when he could be teaching a new group!

S’kef would see that, right? Or he’ll leave you with them just to spite you. Not likely; it wouldn’t make sense, even if he’d enjoy being a prick. The green dragon snorted again, her gaze never once having left Tyrrisath while she waited for B’jin on the rooftop; she was as eager to get down to the lake and cool off as he was, and she didn’t trust the brownpair as far as she could throw them between.

“I would like to graduate them at the start of next month.” B’jin frowned thoughtfully again. “If I speak to some of the others, I believe we could re-arrange their education roster to be condensed over a smaller time frame. I have some that are about as bright as a wet rock at times, and none of them have faltered. If we can free up ‘Masters six to ten months early, why not? We’re going to need them, with how Krypth is whoring herself out.” B’jin was too busy thinking about what he was saying, that he wasn’t thinking about the words he was using, frowning vaguely at S’kef but not really seeing the brownrider, he was all Harper, all Teacher and very little Greenrider.

The request was pleasantly straightforward. S'kef only partially expected as much from B'jin, whose rapidly changing moods and hit or miss attitude could produce a wide range of results. B'jin could be awfully evasive when he wanted to, a trait which S'kef chalked up to craftiness, but he could also be terribly pointed. Fortunately for both of them, today appeared to be a pointed day, and S'kef was happy to see it.

"I see no problem with this," he replied without much thought. It was a no-brainer in his eyes. The Weyr was growing fast, and as the younger riders were quickly out-populating the older riders, it seemed prudent to pass the older generation's knowledge on as quickly as possible. The young blood would grow to be dangerous if they dallied about too long, and S'kef had every interest in cultivating this new generation, rather than pushing them away. Educating them quickly would save time, prove more efficient (at least in theory) and serve both of their ends. So, why not?

He cut his eyes towards B'jin and nodded slowly. "...Speak with the others, then. I'll arrange a meeting for us to discuss it. It sounds like a simple enough issue, especially if the rest are as compliant as you are implying, B'jin." His tone was silky sweet, but in the back of his mind, he grumpily added that the greenrider had better not waste his time. He had no intention of making any threats, though. B'jin knew him well, and he liked to think he knew B'jin well enough to know that the greenrider wouldn't screw around with something beneficial. As always, the conversation was spoken far more in implications and vague understandings than actual words. Fewer broken bones and temper tantrums this way!

When B'jin's comment about Krypth finally came along, S'kef couldn't help but grin for a brief moment. "True enough," he said, masking his humor and allowing it to fizzle away after that moment of entertainment. He adjusted his position slightly, taking those moments to think if he needed anything else, before speaking about again.

'Speaking of classes, B'jin...Any standouts in your little group? I trust a Weyrling Master to recommend any star potential to me," he said.

“I doubt there will be much in the way of rejection,” B’jin shrugged absently, checking off the current Weyrlingmasters in the back of his head. Most of them were reasonable individuals, and the greenrider shrugged again. “Krypth’s clutch with Okalinath graduates next month anyway. We can graduate my lot at the same time. G’rem’s group with Aradissicath might be a bit of an issue; they’ll be old enough to graduate but I know he’s been taking it slow because it’s all greens – he may want to carry them to the full twenty-four months because of that. I’ll talk to him. The dual clutch that J’d- Jayedi is teaching are still young enough that they won’t be too affected by any changes.”

The slip on the bluerider’s name was caught quickly; B’jin had found it difficult to go from calling many of the women he’d known for several years by their hyphenation back to full names he’d never even heard of before. Par’a would always be Par’a to him, just as he struggled with J’di’s full name. It was similar to the constant slip ups he had referring to Valerian and Talian by their honorifics. It’s a good thing you never learned R’nd’s full name first. He still cringes when Amorandii calls him by it. B’jin ignored the green’s input about his lover, waving her off absently. He was busy considering S’kef’s question.

“Not particularly,” B’jin’s tone was droll and he shook his head. “Talian is as abysmal as expected; he’ll be far more use if we shove him in a goldrider class and emphasis his and his brown’s use as weyr healers. He’s not one who enjoys teaching, but he’d likely prove more use to us if we got him teaching the goldriders how to be better healers. It’d be good to keep some of them busy.” A flat look was given to S’kef from under B’jin’s eyelashes. A vague indication that the greenrider was as aware as anyone else of the bitching that was occurring between the goldriders. Just because he didn’t actively take part in gossip, and was remarkably blind to that which he starred in, didn’t mean he wasn’t paying attention to everyone else. He was, after all, a well-trained harper.

“The little bluerider has shaped up better than I expected.” That kid had come a long way since asking if browns flew blues, something that was still liable to have B’jin or even Larrikith snort out a laugh at the most obscure times. Because, honestly!  “But none of them are particularly enlightening. I had hoped for better,” even the brownriders were mediocre in B’jin’s opinion… but then he was incredibly biased against brownriders. The man took a deep breath, and puffed it out quietly.

B’jin chewed on his lip for a moment, before shifting forward again, and frowning at S’kef seriously. “Larrikith’s been keeping tabs on the Candidate potential we have…” B’jin shook his head. “We’re going to run out of anything remotely useful soon. Most of them are getting too old, and many of the Weyrbrats are still too young. If Aradissicath clutches well, there could be some forty eggs on the Sands between her and Okalinath.” Possibly more, though B’jin was hoping not, for the sake of the dragonets. There simply wasn’t the variety available to them that there should be, especially now the female candidates were being so heavily moderated.

“The lack of quality in my class won’t be much, compared to what we’ll be looking at this time next year, if something doesn’t change.” It wasn’t meant to be subtle, and it certainly wasn’t a hint that B’jin thought they should re-open stealing; the greenrider knew enough about S’kef to know the man wanted to return home, and B’jin wasn’t willing to believe the man didn’t have some plan he was attempting to work. The greenrider was surprised it had been so long and the man was still scuffing his feet in the dirt. Well, if the brownrider didn’t get a move on, they’d be losing what dragons were born to death when they lacked suitable partners to Impress to.

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So much speech in this one xD Have fun >D

S'kef listened quietly, not as uninterested in B'jin's words as he appeared, but not as invested as he could have been. It was treading dangerously close to 'too much information' for his liking, since the Weyrleader was hardly interested in idle gossip, but at least B'jin had a point and was working towards it. S'kef's expression remained still and unmoving, his eyes deep and thoughtful. "I see," he said at length, sighing gently and setting his eyes on the ground as he thought over the information B'jin had just given him.


"Don't fear for your boy," he replied initially. He ignored B'jin's methods and went right for the intent. "He won't be placed in a fighting wing. He's a healer." So there was no need to defend him with exaggerations of his poor performance. S'kef surely hoped they were exaggeration at least! He liked to think that a good, solid brown dragon like that wouldn't waste itself on a useless bonded! S'kef respected B'jin's desire to protect the kid, but now wasn't the time for theatrics. S'kef provided B'jin with the simple, curt reassurance, and then moved on.

He smiled thoughtfully, pleased by B'jin's supposedly dour news that they were running low on candidates. "It was bound to happen sooner or later," he replied, as if it were a small matter. "The dragons are breeding and growing faster than we could hope to match. His responsive smile shifted into a more self-satisfied grin. He raised his brows knowingly at B'jin. "We've got a solution in mind," he said plainly.

He hatched B'jin boldly, hoping to gauge his reaction. How splendid it would be to bring B'jin into the fold! It would be a functional prize, thanks to B'jin's skill-set, and the greenrider had just made his own desires very clear. S'kef liked what he saw. He really, really liked what he saw Intrigue flashed in his eyes, and that charming smile returned. S'kef was so rarely happy, at least away from J'ver. "Something obviously needs to be done about it," S'kef concluded simply, shrugging in a content and unconcerned manner.

The smile suddenly faded. "...How much would you be willing to do about it, if it fell to someone like you?" he asked. "...Hypothetically, of course." Would it be worth burying the hatchet? S'kef thought so.

Both of B'jin's eyebrows arched upwards, the greenrider quite clearly startled at being asked his opinion on the whole ordeal, especially by S'kef. The fact that the question was hypothetical was completely irrelevant; S'kef so rarely asked for anyone's opinion, and B'jin could count on one hand the times the brownrider had asked for his input - and it had usually been in the process of playing games in front of D'ren that only B'jin was aware were dangerous games. That caused eyebrows to furrow over suddenly suspicious brown eyes as B'jin studied S'kef carefully for several moments, weighing up the pros and cons of answering the other man. Even B'jin was aware enough - in general, and of S'kef - to realise the man was playing a game of some description; but he couldn't figure out exactly what type of game was being played, the moves being made, or how it was he fit into the pieces the brownrider was moving around.

In the end, it was simply easier to answer hte question that had been posed, than to try and figure out what was going on. He'd talk to R'nd later; the bluerider was much better at seeing through S'kef's games than B'jin was - at least in B'jin's own mind.

"Me?" B'jin gave a sour snort. "Pack my shit and leave." The way he said it, and the dirty look he gave S'kef in the process, made several things abundantly clear. The main thing that shone through in that moment, was the fact that B'jin was a complete idiot - the greenrider had never been good with his lessons, or with learning the dragonkind lessons that had been taught to him during his own Weyrlinghood. He was a fantastic teacher, but there was one thing he had failed to learn, and clearly, there was one thing he was failing to pass on to his young class: B'jin did not have any understanding of the gold dragon's ability to impose her will upon others.

He understood that sometimes Nirinath gave commands that made the other dragons and their riders cranky, and he was aware that there was a ranking hierarchy within the dragon colours, but he was far more aware of such things on the human level, which was what he had been teaching his class. He had no idea or understanding of the dragon side of it. To the best of his understanding, the reason they were all locked up in the South was because Tsuen was a crazy old bitch, and no one had been willing to turn her against them when she was in possession of the only mature gold on Pern. It never occurred to him that the reason everyone stayed South, was because they couldn't go back North, as it would go against Nirinath's command.

Being completely incapable of understanding that particular process, B'jin was incapable of ensuring - consciously or subconsciously - that Larrikith followed through on the orders she was given. Quite the opposite, B'jin's lack of understanding worked hand in hand with his dragon's incredibly short memory; even for a dragon, Larrikith had a terrible memory and usually forgot things as fast as Grith did - the only way the spunky green managed to remember anything, was by planting her own thoughts within B'jin's mind. Linked in with her own disdain for Nirinath, and her lack of caring what the gold had to say, Larrikith usually forgot the command to stay South as soon as she'd been distracted by something else.

B'jin continued to frown at S'kef from where he was sitting, clearly of the opinion that what he had just said was the most obvious thing in the world, and just as clearly disgruntled that no one was willing to actively do it. He hadn't the foggiest idea that he'd just prove himself as ignorant and obnoxious as the brownrider had first labelled him all those many years ago. Nor did he have any idea that the brownrider would be able to use that ignorant arrogance to get them all home.

Did that really just happen?

S'kef had to struggle to keep the look of disbelief off of his face. His opinion of B'jin was high in some respects and low in others, depending on the issue at hand, but never in his life had he considered it even remotely possible that someone could be so out of touch with reality as the greenrider had just revealed himself to be. It was stunning. Did he really have no idea how powerful that little ability of his was? Did he even realize that it was an ability? How did he think the power of the Weyr operated or where the traditions came from?

Well, S'kef had always believed that greenriders weren't meant to ask questions, and this one certainly didn't. S'kef grinned quite suddenly, his expression muted but wicked. The old predatory look crept back into his eyes as he nodded in response to B'jin's hissing commentary. "I see. I would expect no less," he replied, allowing a bit of his old disdain to slip into his voice.  He hoped - in fact assumed - that B'jin would dismiss it as a fragment of S'kef's olf arrogance returning for a second round. S'kef had always been politely condescending towards  B'jin. This would be just another little incident.

"Well, it's been a pleasure talking to you," the brownrider said, casting B'jin a flat, unamused look. Get out of my house. "But I have work to do. Just send me a write-up of your plans and I'll see that it's quickly approved...We'll have you herding a new group of weyrlings in no time, B'jin."

B’jin rapidly lost all colour in his face when S’kef turned that grin upon him, the greenrider not even conscious of the way he flattened himself back into the chair and stared at the other rider with huge eyes. Was he about to die because of what he had just said? That particular fear was clearly written on the greenrider’s face, and rather than reassure him, S’kef’s disdainful reply only worried him further. B’jin wriggled uncomfortably, incredibly aware of the fact that he would not be able to escape if the brownrider decided to attack him.

The dismissal was taken with great relief – an emotion B’jin didn’t mean to let show – as he scrambled from his seat and threw out a trembling “Yes sir!” even as he bolted for the door without looking back. Why was he only ever aware of how dangerous S’kef was, after he had opened his big mouth? Clipping the door shut behind himself (being almost dramatically careful not to slam it) B’jin eyeballed Tyrrisath for a moment before throwing himself on Larrikith, barely managing to form the thought of finding R’nd before the little green was flicking between, already anticipating B’jin’s desires.

Well, you got what you wanted, the little green pointed out as she landed, and a trembling B’jin slid to the ground. At what cost, though? Larrikith just shrugged as her rider let himself into the empty hut.