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+--- Thread: [G] [C] 741.05.23 Alone in a crowd (/showthread.php?tid=4649)
741.05.23 Alone in a crowd - A'ryn - 28.May.20
The crowd seemed to surge and grow by the second as the gatherers bustled about, browsing the booths’ wares and negotiating prices with their crafters. The tantalizing smell of roasting meat drifted among the moving bodies in such a way that it was nearly impossible to tell where the smell originated, and the sound of a harper’s guitar could be faintly heard above the din. Pushing a red curl behind her ear, Aederyn took a deep breath before moving from her hiding place at the back corner of a tanner’s tent to make her way to the front counter of it, searching for a small message pouch for Rudi. The mob seemed to press in on her, and for just a moment she longed for the freedom of the traces once again, with their big open spaces and lack of human interaction. She closed here eyes and steadied herself, forcing the sounds and smells around her to the back of her mind and focusing instead on the light, happy sound of that harper’s guitar. A few heartbeats later she shook her head and again turned to the offerings on the table. No luck. Plenty of leather, a few larger bags, some belts, even a pair of boots, but nothing so small and delicate as a firelizard message pouch. She frowned and bit her lip, her shoulders slumping slightly in disappointment. She thanked the crafter at the booth, though he didn’t seem to notice her as he was haggling with someone at the other end of the counter. She didn’t mind though, and ducked back down the alley between booths where it was a bit less crowded.
Maybe this was a bad idea. She had been thankful for some time off, away from her duties with the Weyrwoman’s children, as much as she had come to care for the kids. But now, here she was, stranded and alone at a Gather at a strange Hold. With a slight shock, she realized that this was the first Gather she has ever attended without Alekse or Meri at her side. She was well and truly alone here. She absently wondered if she should just wait back at the clearing for R’Dare and Kadaisicalth, but quickly dismissed the idea as they would likely be a while, enjoying the happenings up at the Weyr proper. She would join them later, though. She would like to see the Weyr, herself, but first, that message pouch…Rudi chirruped at her from where he had taken up a perch atop a nearby tent pole, and she smiled, signaling him to stay out of the way, but glad of his presence. His mellow curiosity calmed her somewhat. Determination renewed, she picked her way along the edge of the crowd, peeking over shoulders at tables and making her way closer to where the harper played at the edge of the dancing square, that stood empty and waiting for the evening’s festivities to begin in earnest.
RE: 741.05.23 Alone in a crowd - R'dare - 29.May.20
"There you are!" R'dare called out as he spotted the familiar head of red curls. He had felt bad for leaving Aederyn no matter how much she insisted she was fine. He had convinced himself that she would know people from her runner days and she could handle herself as well if anyone tried anything on her for the same reason. She was tough, confident, and easy to befriend--and if nothing else, Rudi would find him or R'dal if she really needed them.
Still, after leaving and visiting a Benden Weyr friend, R'dare couldn't shake how he felt like a bad friend and worried Aederyn actually did want company but hadn't said anything because he was confident she still had it in her head that she was the new girl and not really a part of the crowd. That was complete nonsense, of course, and eventually they would get her to realise it as well.
"So are you on a shopping mission or were you simply waiting for me to appear and whisk you off to dance and get this party started?" R'dare smiled and waved to the empty dance square that Aederyn seemed to be heading toward or at least curious about. Mylorah must have been taking a break or was off convincing some other young lord to join her because he expected to see her there after hearing about her time at the last Gather she attended.
"I warn you in advance that I'm not the best dancer and I can't guarantee your toes will be safe if I get within a foot of them while we're both in motion." Honestly, he was a bit of a klutz at times and would likely step on his own feet somehow while dancing. But as long as they were having fun, he didn't mind his stumbles.
RE: 741.05.23 Alone in a crowd - A'ryn - 29.May.20
Her slightly troubled mood changed instantly at the unexpected call of her friend. She hadn’t expected him for at least a few hours, and hoped all was well with the people he was visiting with at the Weyr. His broad smile confirmed that all was well, and she was glad of that.
“Hey!” She grinned and bounded the couple of steps to the bluerider as he waved at the dance floor. She straightened in mock seriousness. “I am on a mission. I am absolutely determined to find a decent message pouch for Rudi. I simply cannot let another letter disappear between like the last two seem to have done.” Her mouth quirked at the corners as she imagined the look on her older brother’s face. “Alekse was apparently very confused to have him show up, very insistent about untying the extremely loose ribbon around his leg. There was a letter there…” She shrugged, rolled her eyes, and sighed in exaggerated frustration, relaxing her posture. “But nobody seems to make anything that tiny. I’ll look again later. I’m going cross-eyed staring at everything at these booths!”
Another song started up and she smirked sideways at R’dare. Crowds of people aimlessly wandering among booths weren’t something she enjoyed, but a crowded dance floor? That was a different story…her runner-honed athleticism allowed her move easily on the dance floor, and she greatly enjoyed the creativity it allowed her. This dance floor wasn’t yet occupied, save for a handful of others scattered about the edges, clumped and conversing with each other, but she had a feeling it would start to fill quickly as the afternoon progressed into evening. The stage hadn’t yet been filled with the usual compliment, but the lone harper with his guitar was certainly doing a stellar job for the moment. She looked forward to hearing what the full band sounded like if this was only a sample of the hall’s offerings. Her foot tapped to the beat and she swayed with the melody, snaking her hand to grab R’dare’s and pulling them both into the square. “I’m light on my feet, you’ll do just fine.”
RE: 741.05.23 Alone in a crowd - R'dare - 29.May.20
He wasn’t so sure about that but he laughed as he was ‘dragged’ to the floor. He could fall flat on his face and still have fun. One thing he learned about growing up in the jungle was you took the dangers hidden in the greenery seriously but you didn’t take yourself seriously. What was the point? It was easier to laugh it off and move on to the next adventure. Dwelling on something didn’t help, something that was getting harder to do as he got older and life tossed more at him but for the most part, he didn’t live with too many regrets or wish he could change.
Finding the rhythm of the song wasn’t difficult and if asked, R’dare would be able to clap along and keep time without issue. However, moving his body in time wasn’t always the most co-ordinated sight but he did his best to follow Aederyn’s lead in how she moved and tried to use Mylorah’s carefree ownership of the dance square as motivation.
He was laughing and so far hadn’t stepped on her toes—whether that was luck or Aederyn really was light on her feet and dodged all incoming attacks. As the song finally came to a close, he kept her on the square, ready for the harper to start up the next song. In the meantime, he picked up their conversation of before. “Firelizards still aren’t that common for holders so anything for them would be custom ordered. But you should try asking one of the leather workers in the Weyrs. I know T’ryn’s kind of sort of girlfriend’s brother works with leather and is apparently amazing. She’s in the latest weyrling class at Fort so we can ask her about it.”
RE: 741.05.23 Alone in a crowd - A'ryn - 31.May.20
Aederyn nodded, considering that. An item for a firelizard would be more common among Weyrfolk than holders, and besides that, commissioning a custom item from a gather booth would be three times the price than the same item elsewhere. She’d learned that with her first pair of runners’ boots. She made a mental note to talk to -T’ryn? And his sort-of girlfriend… She hadn’t actually met T’ryn yet, but she had heard of the young bronzerider. She was still meeting so many new people and couldn’t help but feel a little behind the curve as so many in her still-forming friend group were close to her own age if not younger, and had Impressed at ages as young as twelve…She hoped she would be worthy of Impressing whenever the next Hatching happened…No matter. That would be something to worry over another day. Today, fun!
She kept them both out on the floor for as long as she could, hopefully without being considered rude or monopolizing of the blue rider’s time. She did love to dance, and she found herself drawn to R’dare’s easy-going personality. After a few songs that had even her well-trained lungs huffing, the redhead nodded toward an empty table along the sidelines. Collapsing into a chair, she motioned for two drinks to one of the servers baring trays of beverages, exchanging a few small marks for them and passing one to R’dare.
“I’d like that. Talking to that girl. You know her?” Aederyn leaned forward, elbows on the table, and rested her chin on her folded hands. The crowd had grown in a short amount of time, but they were largely ignored at their table as people now flocked to the dance floor, seeing the band setting up for their full afternoon set.
RE: 741.05.23 Alone in a crowd - R'dare - 01.Jun.20
R'dare was wiped out from their dancing and didn't mind being led off for a break. Maybe he needed to up his exercise routine to build up some more stamina. Something to consider, he decided as he dramatically flopped in a chair and draped himself over the table while Aederyn had more manners and common sense with the drinks. He sat up and accepted the drink with a smile and word of thanks before happily chugging back half of it. Maybe it was just dancing in the afternoon heat that was the problem.
He shook his head when asked about Cazan. "I know some people in her class but I haven't actually directly interacted with Cazan outside of a quick introduction through T'ryn." He tried not to be too big of a distraction to the weyrling classes in their early months, knowing how much attention the dragonets needed and how exhausted everyone always was. "First impression of her is she's nice though frazzled and overwhelmed at the time. I think she's settling in better now. Their dragons are about five months now so things should be running more smoothly in all areas." He hoped. His own experience had gone fairly well--outside of Kadaisicalth choking on the apple he tried to swallow whole when he was still rather young. R'dare didn't think he'd ever get that image and sensation of sticking his hand down his dragon's throat out of his mind.
He shoved that memory away and took another swig of the drink, savouring it a bit more now that he wasn't nearly as parched. "What are your plans for the rest of the day now that you're not hunting for Rudi-sized accessories? I'm going to head up to the Weyr in the evening if you want to come. It won't be as... confining." R'dare did his best to point out the Weyr at night would be a lot wilder than a Hold Gather by trying to make it sound like he meant the crowded dance floor and tables with a wave of his hand. He didn't want to insult anyone but he also wanted to make sure Aederyn was ready for a Weyr party.
RE: 741.05.23 Alone in a crowd - A'ryn - 11.Jun.20
“Okay, cool. I’ll have to see if I can find her when we get back to Fort.” Smiling, she held back a giggle as his expression changed, thinking of a memory that might not be the most pleasant, judging by the face he seemed to make. Cazan…she could remember that. Wasn’t she the girl who Impressed from the stands at the Hatching R’dal had brought her to? She absently wondered if she herself might have Impressed if she attended more Hatchings in the past. Hm…Logging her musings away she focused again on the blue rider.
She stopped to think on what he said. If she was pretty much guaranteed to not find anything to suit her needs for her firelizard, she really didn’t have any other reason to stick around the hold. “I’d love to come up to the Weyr!” She blurted.
“Though I might see about some other shopping…” She looked around at the other people in their finery, and not even necessarily in their Gather Best. The nicest of their clothes would be reserved for the fancier parties in the evenings. she tugged slightly at her own dress. It was simple, but pretty enough in a shade of dusty blue that complimented her eyes, but she still felt a little self conscious in it as it as she’d has it since she was fifteen and it was a bit worn. “Is there anything…particular…that’s better for a Weyr gather?” The differences on Holders versus Weyrfolk were becoming more and more apparent the longer she stayed at Fort, from clothing to relationships, and she didn’t want to misstep and give a poor impression, especially after the folk at Fort had already been so welcoming. She would also need to find a way to make a few extra marks, not having made much since leaving the runnercraft. While she liked to travel light, her belt pouch was getting just a little too light for her liking.
An idea struck her and she smiled wickedly. “Do any of the people around here fancy making wagers on racing? Like…a runner race?” Her brother had often earned extra marks in the southern parts of the continent by winning races, but again, Aederyn was unsure if things functioned differently around here, or what they thought of such things as it had never actually come up before. “If that’s even allowed…”
RE: 741.05.23 Alone in a crowd - R'dare - 14.Jun.20
R’dare lit up at Aederyn’s excitement to go to the Weyr. He honestly preferred the openness of Katila but the Weyrs were still his home and he was proud of them and their lifestyles and couldn’t help but smile every time someone else expressed joy at the idea of going to one. Sure, his friend was now weyrfolk as well but she had only seen Fort Weyr but was always curious about their ways and eager to learn more. Seeing her jump at the chance to mingle with them whenever she could left R’dare glad R’dal had Searched the vibrant woman.
Though he was momentarily confused at what Aederyn was hesitantly asking about but then figured it had to be about clothes given she had been tugging at her dress. He hadn’t thought anything was wrong with her dress. Sure, it was simple but she looked lovely in it and wasn’t that the point? Well, he supposed clothes served a deeper purpose of warmth, protection, and comfort but they also served to give some form of identity and he supposed to help you show off and attract attention. He thought he was getting better at adjusting to the real world and how it worked as opposed to the tiny isolated village but sometimes it still seemed like he was floundering.
“Honestly, Weyr gathers are just an excuse to get together and drink and play in various ways. You can wear whatever you’re comfortable with. I should warn you that as the night progresses, some people start losing clothes for various reasons.” Sometimes it was a game of strip poker and sometimes people were a bit lusty and forgot where they were—or maybe they didn’t. Some of the people he now knew thanks to Casa probably did such things intentionally for the thrill.
A chuckle escaped at her excitement and then hesitance at her idea. He liked her enthusiasm about everything but he wished she’d stop doubting everything. “I don’t see why not. I know they have some races going on since I saw them on my way back down here and I’m sure there’s betting to go with it.” Unless they were just showing off how amazing their breed of horse was. He knew sometimes horses were for sale at some Gathers so maybe someone raised fast horses and there was a market for it—probably for travel for those that didn’t have a dragon.
“Did you want company for that? I’ll be completely useless at betting but I like to think I’m decent company all the same.”
RE: 741.05.23 Alone in a crowd - A'ryn - 28.Jun.20
She nodded and was visibly relieved when he talked about the more open and casual nature of Weyr gathers, slouching comfortably and letting out a slight giggle at the mention of losing clothes. She certainly wasn’t shy with regards to that. Clothes bogged a person down and made movement difficult. Running, particularly during the summer months, was best done in snug but not too tight shorts and a band across the chest to keep what little bit she had up there from bouncing. That didn’t go over well with most, particularly where typical Holderfolk were involved, but it was definitely more comfortable. And though she sometimes wished for more womanly curves, she was still quite happy with her physical shape…why not show it off from time to time?
Though she still wouldn’t mind earning some extra marks. After all, she’d need to pay this Cazan girl if she were to make a message pouch for Rudi.
Glad to hear that races and betting weren’t frowned upon, She bounced in her seat, excitement tingling through her at the thought of being near some sort of action she was at least semi-familiar with. “I’d love the company, if you’re not sick of me already.” She smiled sideways at the dragonrider in an effort to joke. Being on the traces was so serious, and she was realizing more and more that she was severely lacking in her skills of ‘how to have a good time’ because of just how seriously she had taken her Craft and her life up to joining Fort. It was nice to loosen up and enjoy things.
She’d never actually been in a race, but was confident she’d do well for herself. A thought occurred to her and she stopped mid-bounce. “Wait…are we talking about the same kind of race?” She paused and stared intently at him for a moment. “I was talking about running myself…not horses…” she trailed off and laughed. “Though I’m good either way. It’s bound to be good fun, regardless!” She quickly considered it and decided her judgement of a human runner body may translate well to picking a winning beast and made to stand, gesturing for her companion to follow.
RE: 741.05.23 Alone in a crowd - R'dare - 29.Jun.20
R'dare stared blankly at Aederyn for several seconds before bursting into laughter over her clarification. "I think we are! That's so odd for me to think of horses first instead of humans running. We would race as kids and wing practices back in Katila would have the dragonriders doing it for friendly competition and exercise. I think I've become too focused on remembering horses are a thing to think beyond them now." He had heard stories of horses as a kid with even his parents insisting they were real but R'dare never fully believed them--even though his dad was the coolest and never lied.
"Anyway, they might have foot races as well, though I'm not sure if there's betting or if it's a children's game. We can find out along the way. And I'm sorry to say that you're stuck with me until you tell me to go away. I'm not one to get sick of my friends." He was a social creature by nature, though that didn't mean they had to constantly talk or even be doing something. Simply hanging out with a friend as they lazed on a beach or each read a book in silence was nice. He just enjoyed the companionship.
With a smile, R'dare linked their arms together and took a moment to look around, trying to recall which direction he had seen the horse races. He wasn't hopeless when it came to directions but he could get turned around and need a little time to find his way again. Satisfied he had found the way, he gestured towards it. "Did R'dal tell you about the first time we saw a horse or snow?" Both were entertaining stories, one of which left him cold and with a wet bottom, and would no doubt make Aederyn laugh on their walk.