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Post by Shikai on Aug 14, 2008 16:43:07 GMT -5
((Calling Mariya!))
Farallen inhaled deeply, enjoying the fresh air blowing in from the ocean. Raising a hand to his brow, he peered through the bright sunlight with slightly narrowed, amber brown eyes, looking at the distant water itself where the land turned to ocean at the end of the valley. It was a nice, gentle slope from where he stood at the weyr’s entrance, just outside the massive tunnel, down to the sparkling water, and the path would take him right between two beautiful jungles. Well, beautiful in Farallen’s opinion, anyway.
He set out happily, humming idly to himself as he started walking down the long path toward the water, his head turning left and right to admire the jungle on either side of him. What better way was there to spend the day? It was an especially quiet day, after all, for the dragonhealer, and after several hours absently sorting through herbs and tidying up the infirmary, one of the older journeyman healers had simply told him it would be alright for him to have the day to himself.
It wasn’t the first time, either, Farallen thought with dismay. The lad was starting to feel rather useless, and there was nothing worse for Farallen than that. Dragons were rather healthy creatures, rarely getting sick, and with no threadfall, it was only the occasional scrape or tear that required his attention. The healers had more to occupy themselves with, as humans were not so hardy as dragons, but as a dragonhealer, Farallen couldn’t assist with any but the simplest tasks. Farallen adored his craft, he only wished he could be using it for some good, instead of being sent off to take naps and go for walks.
The breeze picked up, and Farallen sighed, imagining that the wind was lifting away the negative feelings. It was a lovely day, he should be enjoying it! And he did like going for walks…he had just been on so many of late. Farallen tried to push these thoughts from his mind, instead absorbing himself in admiring the vibrant green plants as he passed.
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Post by Mariya on Aug 15, 2008 14:17:12 GMT -5
It was one of those sunny days, not too hot nor too chilly, just about right for a quick swim. Mariya was supposed to be gathering some plants, but she was being lazy at the moment. As long as she returned with a bag or two full, she wouldn't be missed. So she was sitting on the rock, watching some wild flitters cavort and fight over some crustaceans in the pools. Perhaps she'll grab some for lunch before the sun got too bright for her pale and sometimes freckled skin. Ah, the plague of being a red head.
Looking around, she didn't see anybody headed her way, nor had she heard of anybody else being assigned this direction for picking, so Mariya stripped down quick as a wink. She laid her tunic over the rocks, securing it with some more rocks so it wouldn't get blown away and cautiously walked to the water edge. It had been a while since she felt safe enough to do this. Not since Emmah's fiance...
Shrugging, she braced herself and strode right into the cooler water. She ducked her head to get wet and pushed her feet off the bottom. It wasn't that deep here, but she knew that there was probably an undertow that she needed to be wary of. Several dolphins and larger fish broke surface nearby and continued on their way. It was a pretty day. She smiled and turned on her back to float. Several of the flitters decided that her belly was a good place to perch. It was fine until they flexed their toes. Irritated, she brushed them away, watching with amazement over again when some of them blinked out of sight. That never ceased to amaze her.
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Post by Shikai on Aug 15, 2008 17:36:39 GMT -5
Before he knew it, Farallen had reached the end of the trail. He paused, gratefully letting the cool, ocean air ruffle through his air and cool him off after his long walk. But it was still quite sunny, and the breeze could only do so much. The water looked quite inviting, come to think of it. As he had nothing else to do that day, why not go for a swim?
The dragonhealer moved down the beach, his eyes on his feet to ensure that he didn’t trip over an unseen rock. Perhaps this is why he didn’t notice that he was not alone on the beach until after he had peeled off his own clothes, putting much less care into securing them than the girl had done not long before, and promptly slipped into the water. He immediately dunked his head under, adjusting quickly to the cool temperature, and swam out underwater until the water was halfway up his chest when he stood.
Farallen pawed at his eyes, clearing the stinging salt water from them, and blinked. Yet as he regained his vision and looked back at the beach, he noticed that his was not the only set of clothes on the rocks. That was odd, he thought. Had someone forgotten their tunic there? He turned back to look out at the horizon, and as he swept his eyes from the beach out toward the open water, they fell upon a sight that brought a deep, red flush of embarrassment to Farallen’s face. Apparently he was not the only one who had thought a swim sounded like a good idea! Did she look familiar? He didn’t stare long enough to figure it out. Farallen whirled around in the water to face the other way and avert his eyes, sending splashes flying everywhere.
“I’m sorry!” He cried, fixing his eyes upon the water. “I…didn’t realize you were here…stupid of me…” He mumbled, berating himself for not being more observant.
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Post by Mariya on Aug 21, 2008 12:00:03 GMT -5
Mariya heard somebody or something splash into the water, but she wasn't too concerned about her state of dress or lack thereof. Dragons didn't bother her and if it was someone from the Weyr, well they were all adults, even if only in the mental stage. She continued her lazy enjoyment of the day, the sun and the water, mindful of her pale skin and freckles though.
“I…didn’t realize you were here…stupid of me…”
The male voice broke through her reverie and she was almost amused. Somebody was embarrassed by her presence! She giggled and moved around, shading her eyes with one hand as she made sure her chest was below the water line. "Well, I'm not bothered by it. Why should you?"
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Post by Shikai on Aug 21, 2008 17:31:28 GMT -5
Farallen wasn’t sure what he had been expecting from the girl who’s swimming he had horribly interrupted, but the reaction she gave him was certainly not it. His reddened face took on a baffled expression as he heard her start giggling, and claim that she wasn’t bothered. No shrieking, no yelling, no horrified silence…she was just amused? Well, that was an immense relief! He sighed deeply, sinking lower into the water, and slowly turned his head. Seeing only her head bobbing above the water, he turned around to face her.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t…you know, see anything.” He said, apologizing again with a sheepish smile. He kept a respectful distance from her, hanging back where he was. What should he do now? She really didn’t seem to mind, finding his embarrassment funny. Well…it was a humorous situation, come to think of it, although one he would rather not find himself in all the same. He didn’t really want to leave yet, and the girl didn’t seem to want him gone, necessarily, so perhaps he would just swim for the time being. Besides, he wasn’t looking forward to getting back out of the water in his situation.
“You don’t happen to work in the infirmary, do you? Are you a healer?” He asked suddenly, as he realized that he was sure he had seen the girl before. “Oh! And I’m Farallen. I’m a dragonhealer apprentice, see.” The lad added, realizing that while he had surely seen the girl before, he didn’t know her name, having never been introduced.
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Post by Mariya on Aug 25, 2008 9:23:55 GMT -5
“I’m sorry. I didn’t…you know, see anything.”
The boy or man or whatever was amusing Mariya immensely with his embarrassment. "So, what if you did?" Growing up in a caravan, there was little room for embarrassment about one's body or another's for that matter. It simply didn't matter and made for more simplicity that way.
“You don’t happen to work in the infirmary, do you? Are you a healer?”
She looked at him carefully before answering him. He might have been a friend of Emmah sent to look for her. That was still troubling her, even if it wasn't almost next to impossible for Emmah to follow her through time. She nodded. "Yes. Yes, I do. In Training," she emphasized that last word. She had almost walked the tables when she left the past, which was a small regret. Having to prove herself all over again was hard work, but saved her grieving over her lost friendship with her best friend.
“Oh! And I’m Farallen. I’m a dragonhealer apprentice, see.”
His face was familiar to her, much as her was to his. Judging his face, Mariya figured he was at least 5 if not 6 turns older than her. "Mariya Lilcamp," she said simply. Her red hair was usually a dead giveaway for most to her Caravan roots, but sometimes it had to be explained. She turned on her back, oblivious to her lack of clothing, shaded her eyes and judged the sun's progress across the sky. Almost time to go ashore. Her face was already giving that tell-tale hotness before it burned. "Dragonhealer, huh? That's about as useful as I am being a caravan brat," she teased him slightly.
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Post by Shikai on Aug 25, 2008 16:06:52 GMT -5
The girl’s complete lack of modesty was perplexing to Farallen, although he was glad she wasn’t mad at him. He didn’t have an answer for her, and simply shrugged in response, with a sheepish grin. The weyr he had grown up in was hardly overly concerned with modesty, but the young girls would screech like wherries if anyone happened to catch them bathing.
Fortunately, the conversation turned to something much less awkward, as she affirmed his suspicions that it was, in fact, the healing caverns he had seen her about. She looked quite young, so he expected her to be of the apprentice rank, not that he was particularly rank-conscious. “Ah, so that’s where I’ve seen you! I thought you looked familiar.” He explained, and nodded as she gave her name. Mariya. He wasn’t the best with names, but he knew few enough people in the weyr to where remembering the names of those he was acquainted with wasn’t a problem even for him.
He politely averted his eyes as Mariya floated on her back. While she certainly didn’t seem to mind it, Farallen was hardly going to stare. He winced visibly at her words, attempting a feeble smile in response to her teasing, but it was quite the wrong thing to say to Farallen. He certainly felt useless, and there was nothing he hated quite so much as that. The dragonhealer enjoyed being productive, and had had far too little to do of late. He wasn’t really bothered by the fact that he was technically but an apprentice, despite usually doing journeyman-level work, although it would be nice to be promoted, if only as a sign from his superiors that they noticed and appreciated his efforts. Not that he needed the praise, but it would be nice, all the same.
“Ah…yeah, I suppose…” He replied weakly, his expression turning to one of melancholy. “I do feel pretty useless.” He admitted. “Haven’t really had a lot to do lately, with no Thread yet…not that that’s a bad thing! Less injured dragons is always good of course, I just wish I could do something…”
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Post by Mariya on Aug 25, 2008 16:38:28 GMT -5
Mariya sensed she had hit a sore spot with the older boy. "Scorch it, Farellan! I was just teasing," she said a little more contrite, and turned off her back. "Healing is hard work. We deserve some time off, now and then." She grinned to soften her words.
"You could help me fill my quota today of plants and such," she said batting her eyes some. Darn that Emmah for having taught her how to do that. "That is, if you wanted to?" this was a hopeful statement. Not many older boys wanted anything to do with a caravan brat. "I could show you where to get the best numbweed and fellis that they always need..." her voice trailed off.
She giggled to hide her sudden shyness and started swimming for the beach. She had had enough of the sun for one day. And he was being no fun with not pickign up her teasing.
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Post by Shikai on Aug 27, 2008 23:07:07 GMT -5
Farallen tried to smile back at the girl, regretting reacting the way he had. He knew she had only been teasing, and he didn’t really mind being teased, especially in a friendly manner (although the boy, optimistic as he was, was inclined to believe that all teasing directed at him was merely friendly). It was merely that her words had reminded him of the frustrated feelings and suspicions that he was utterly useless to the weyr at the moment, even if that were soon to change when Threadfall began.
It was strange, he supposed, that he had begun to hate having ‘time off’. He used to like it, enjoying getting a break from his studies to go outside and relax. But when it seemed that every other day he was being sent off, unwanted in the infirmary where he was merely in the way of the busier non-dragonhealers, he longed for the business of his days at Artemis Moonlight. Was he wrong to leave? Now he was in a time where he knew almost no one, and where his skills weren’t required, at least for the time being. He couldn’t help but feel like an outsider, especially when the few he did know were either candidates or weyrlings.
Mariya’s next words broke into his musings, and a genuine smile flashed across his face at her suggestion. “Sure, I’d love to help!” He exclaimed, cheering up at once at the prospect of finally making himself useful. Farallen regretted his previous emotions. How silly he was being! If he had stayed at Artemis, he might be busy for a while, but as time went on, his future would look bleak indeed. Here, he would be needed eventually, he merely had to bide his time for now. And the people here were so nice to him! Brinne, H’ter, K’ji, and now Mariya…they had all treated him very well. He had no right to complain!
Farallen slowly shifted in the water, turning his back to the girl as she prepared to get out of the water. Given her behavior so far, he doubted he would get any warning from her when she was going to return to the beach, so he elected to be safe and look the other way until she informed him that she was dressed. Well, he hoped she would do that.
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