Cleaning Responsibilities [Tak'ril/Vavithan

[kevna]

Tak'ril ~ Bronze Agureyth

He scratched his head looking Agureyth over. His dragon had long limbs, and his muscled bulk made him look bigger than he was. But he was still big enough for Tak’ril to think about how much time this would cost him. If he was late for dinner, or dish duty, he would really be in trouble with S’bol, but Agureyth came first. The bronze’s usually bright orange hide was dull and darker, coming closer to the darker copper the top of his wings, head, and back sported. This just could not stand.

We can wait till after dinner, I believe this time dish duty is important, and we should not let S’bol down.

“My drudge work can wait for you buddy.” The tall man bent and picked up one of the four buckets he had filled in the bathing room and moved it closer to the dragon, pored the redwort into the bucket, mixing the herb and warm water together with the sponge.

This drudge work is an important responsibility we must uphold.

“You mean me, and you are an even more important responsibility to me. S’bol will understand.”

Of course, mine, you can make whatever decision you wish. I will be happy to be clean.

“Good, because I’m cleaning you.” He pulled the sponge out and squeezed the excess out, and started out on the bronze’s head and knobs.

This is my favorite, yes right there, a little harder.

The young rider chuckled and scrubbed a little harder.

tovaana

[tovaana]

Vavithan; Candidate

He picked up the quil and put it back down. He tapped his desk with a couple of fingers, eying the blank parchment with dread. He had to write his father – not even to mention their poor mother. He was more afraid of his father’s wrath and his influence in the fishing industry. He was by no means the leader of the hold, but he had enough influence to make a fuss if he felt cheated in any way. Vavithan groaned, rubbing his face and leaning over the parchment once more. He had cut a small piece from his journal, small enough so he could ask Muze if her little flit would be willing to deliver the message.

He stared at the paper. What could he say? The truth, he supposed. He dipped the writing utensil in the ink and carefully addressed his father. Then he put the pen down once more and closed the ink capsule. Not now, he needed to think more about this before he wrote to his temperamental father.

He stood up and took his things out of the room he had been borrowing light from and went to drop off his things in his room. Once he was done, he wished he had something to do while he thought about his conundrum. He started thinking about dragons and especially the ones they had just worked with recently. He hadn’t worked with the bronze, but the rider had made it clear that they were welcome any time to help them out. After another moment of thinking about this, he turned and walked briskly toward the weyrling barracks, hoping beyond hope that the bronze or some other weyrling would welcome a helping hand. He needed more hands on experience with dragons.

After making a few misturns to find the weyrling barracks, he heard the deeper voice of a man who seemed to be talking to himself – until Vavithan turned a corner and realized it was indeed the bronze rider talking to his bronze. He grinned despite himself, glad to have come across them. After a moment of assessment, realized he had come at a perfect timing as the bronze was being cleaned.

“I'm for intruding, but do you think I could help?” He took a step into the room, but not too close too quickly. He knew every dragon was different when it came to other people, and he couldn’t quite remember this dragon’s personality. “Oh, I’m Vavithan by the way, one of the candidates.” He offered as a weak introduction. He had been so excited to find an opportunity to work with his hands that he had let slip the niceties of normal conversation.

kevna

[kevna]

Tak'ril ~ Bronze Agureyth

He looked over his shoulder at the greeting and smiled welcomingly. Turning on his heel so he could face the man, “Hey, I’m Tak’ril, and this is Agureyth.” He gestured to the bronze who was peering at the newcomer with curiosity.

Wait that spot isn’t done yet.

Tak’ril ignored his dragon and refrained from putting up his hand for a shake. He had to remember they were wet and dirty, not really prime greeting hands.

“I would be very grateful for the help. Agureyth is getting large enough to make cleaning him quite the chore. Not that I mind of course.” He chuckled and tossed the sponge he had been using toward the young man, gesturing to one of the three buckets he had yet to use. “Feel free to use any of the buckets.”

He turned back to the washing, dipping a new sponge in the bucket, and attacking the left neck ridge he had been scrubbing at earlier. The pleasure that radiated from the bronze dragon was plain.

“So where are you from Vavithan? How long you been here on Mavros?”

[tovaana]

Vavithan; Candidate

The distraction worked almost instantaneously, his mind focusing on the dragon and the task at hand – rather than the task he had been putting off. He caught the sponge, and took a step toward the Bronze. “You don’t mind, do you, Agureyth?” He asked with a smile, starting around the hip area of the bronze. He was a magnificent beast, and his coloring unique. His eyes glanced over at the strokes that Tak’ril was making, trying to mimic the motion and pressure that he seemed to be putting. Whatever the rider was doing was making the bronze happy, and he wanted to make sure he was doing it right. “Is this okay?” He asked to both of them.

“A month or so? Time seems to blur as a candidate.” He said with a sigh that led into a short-lived chuckle. He was trying not to think of home, but the man – who was probably around his age, was asking. And… he should think of home, he needed to find the right way to write to his dad, since he knew Muze could not write yet. He made a mental note that he would teach Muze sometime.

“I’m from Eastern Hold, a small fishing trade hold – and while I did a lot of fishing, I worked a lot with boats… like building them, better designing them…” He trailed off, working on a patch and enjoying the mind numbing sensation that came from physical work. “How about you? Did you always want to be a dragon rider?”

[kevna]

Tak'ril ~ Bronze Agureyth

More itches to be had.And while the bronze did not respond verbally to confirm his approval to the candidate, the dragon rumbled his pleasure and leaned heavily on the hands working to mimic his rider’s.

Tak’ril chuckled and patted the bronze with his wet hands, and then went back to scrubbing. “I’d say if you get a response like that you can’t be doing anything wrong.” The tall bronze rider then nodded, as if agreeing with the man on time. Time did seem to blur when he had been a candidate. All the trainings, all the people, all the chores were such a good distraction from the unbearable wait of what was to come. The hatching. While there were no current eggs on the sands, he didn’t doubt that the time would continue to fly for all the candidates waiting for their chance to impress a priceless companion.

The brunette then perked up as he listened to the short background that the newcomer shared. Another fisher? And a woodworker, which meant he was a hard worker. He was impressed automatically by this levelheaded man working with him on cleaning a dragon that didn’t even belong to him. It meant he was serious at being a rider, and he would make a good rider at that.

He laughed a little caught off guard by the question. He had never dreamed of being a dragonrider. “Honestly I never even considered being a rider before I was Searched on these very shores. I too was a fisherman by trade, born in raised fishing from Tidewalk Hold. It was the only trade in my hold for men it seemed. I was quite happy as a fisherman and wouldn’t have dreamed of anything but being on the seas, until they Searched me, and I couldn’t refuse. It felt natural.”

Tak’ril wiped the sweat on his forehead on his arm, dipping the sponge in the bucket and renewing his vigor. “So was the woodworking a family trade, or something you picked up later? Manual labor has always been my favorite, keeps the mind busy, and the body strong.”

tovaana

[tovaana]

Vavithan; Candidate

“Whoa!” He hadn’t expected the response of the hip leaning in his direction suddenly. “Oh good,” Vavithan chuckled as he caught himself with a couple of awkward backward steps. He moved back toward the dragon, continuing to clean methodically from his hip to his back, and then crouching when he went down the leg.

He could do this. Cleaning Agureyth reminded him of sanding and finishing boats. It was even better – because said boat was interactive. Perhaps the rest would come as naturally…

Vavithan glanced over at Tak’ril, his eyebrows rising when he said that he was also from the fisher trade. He nodded to himself as he talked about how he felt about the fishing trade. Then paused as he told him how it felt natural to accept the calling to be a candidate – not even a dragon rider, because no one can guarantee that you will impress. For him it had not felt so natural, except that he had not wanted to leave Muze or send her off alone. Their father could be unreasonable, but so could others.

“Huh? Oh, no – not really. It was being around boats all the time. I loved seeing all the different types and… well, my father couldn’t refuse the idea of cheap boat repair, so he agreed to my apprenticeship to a master boat builder.” He paused, thinking about how indeed he was a wood worker, but he had only ever been interested in boats. He wondered idly if he’d be able to do something for the dragons and wood.

He dipped his sponge in a separate bucket, glancing over at Tak’ril. “Same. I enjoy physical labor too…” He paused again, wondering if he could tell this stranger about his conundrum. He did feel a connection to this fellow fisherman who had also been searched. “I needed a break from trying to write a letter to my father, who… my sister and I left after being searched without much notice…well, without any notice actually.” Vavithan wondered who had ended up telling his father that they had left, let alone his reaction to it all. “I’ve been meaning to send an apology letter, but…yeah…” He continued to scrub, standing up and stretching a bit after finishing the bronze’s foot.

“Do you have family on Mavros? Or back in Tidewalk?”

[kevna]

Tak'ril - Bronze Agureyth

Tak’ril wondered briefly if his father would have been so open to him learning another trade, when the family trade and the family boat was destined to be fishing. He nodded as he listened, realizing their fathers were not so different. His own father had done something similar with Tak’ril, sending him out on other boats for bigger fishing jobs. It meant more money for the family, and his father could keep closer to home and his wife. Cheap labor.

When the silence stretched for longer then normal Tak’ril glanced toward the young man, wondering what gave him pause. When he finally admitted to his difficulty in communicating with his father, Tak’ril nodded understandingly, and a little guiltily. He had not written his family since he had left a year or so before. He hadn’t the heart, though they deserved to know he was happy and healthy, fully healed and living a full life. Instead, he had left them in the dark. He hadn’t even the decency to think of writing his family a letter.

“I do have family in Tidewalk, though none in Mavros.” He paused, swallowing, then continued, “Parents and a younger brother, but I haven’t had the decency to write them either since I left. At least you are trying soon after departing, I’ve been away more than a turn, and have yet to.” He stepped back from Agureyth’s side to give the dragon a once over and make sure he hadn’t missed any sections on his side.

He scratched his head and gave a half shrug “I guess I don’t really know what to say to them, I can’t say they were too proud of me before I left. Agureyth is my family now, but maybe when he is full grown and we can fly, I’ll go back to see them again.”

You could start with a letter though, if you wanted. Just to let them know you are alive and well.

He stepped forward and gave the bronze a pat on the shoulder, and then stepped away grabbing a jar of oil he had specifically kept for after the sponge bath.

“Are you and your sister pretty close?” He grabbed a handful of oil and started oiling Agureyth down, and then wordlessly offered the oil to the other man in a manner that meant it was optional.

[tovaana]

Vavithan; Candidate

Vavithan looked over at Tak’ril as he related to him that he also hadn’t written his family. It was odd how much they had in common. He almost wished this man had waited to impress in whatever clutch he may impress to – but he knew that wasn’t how it worked. They may be in different stages, but if Vavithan did impress – then one day they’d both be dragon riders… Well, probably not both bronze riders… He gulped at that thought, then glanced over as he talked about how his dragon was his family now.

He smiled softly, finishing up a spot, and then looking at the oiling tools. He nodded, accepting it, and then went to work, making sure to watch Tak’ril for a moment before doing too much.

“Yes, we are. She was actually searched first – then I was invited to come too. I have to admit, being a dragon rider was appealing, but I think my intentions were primarily to watch over my sister…” He sighed. “She’s young… never been out of our hold… she’s probably fine, but now I’m here anyways – and I’m glad I chose to came.”

He paused, enjoying the way the dragon’s coat was looking after the sponge bath and oiling. It was satisfying work. How much more satisfying would it be when it was his own dragon? Even more – a dragon that would talk to him and share emotions with him?

“You know… if you did write to your family, you could talk to them about Agureyth.” Another short pause. “I could probably talk about how Muze is doing. She absolutely loves it, she’s very excited about being a rider.”

He could do that. He didn’t need to start out with apologies, but start out with what and how they were doing. He was so worried about how his father may have reacted, that he had felt the need to apologize – but the apology could be in the form of a story, starting with how candidacy was. How the Weyr Leader had showed gratitude of the fish that they sent to Mavros. He could do that.

“Agureyth sure is handsome.”

[kevna]

Tak'ril ~ Bronze Agureyth

Vavithan was a quick learner, and he liked that. He hoped that the young man impressed well. He felt a tinge of sadness as the man spoke of his sister, hearing the protective influence in the words. He understood the desire to be protective of a sister all to well, and it had nearly destroyed him when he had failed.

He let himself wonder, just for a brief moment what life would have been like if a Search Dragon had found his vibrant older sister, and if he too would have been worthy of being searched along with her, or if he would have continued life as a fisherman, never knowing the life of a dragonrider and of the occupants of Mavros. A life without Agureyth.

You were always meant to be mine, and I yours. Agureyth had caught on to the sad train of thought and Tak’ril felt the assurance and love like a wave roiling through his mind. The dragon leaned toward him, and he enjoyed the weight against him, reassuring and calming.

Tak’ril looked over at the other tall man as he made his suggestion, and the weyrling nodded thoughtfully at the idea. He could start there. He waited the for the young man’s musings about writing about his sister, and stated, “You’re right, starting the letter just talking about the brightest part of your life makes it seem more doable. I’ll have to try that.”

He stepped back to take in the completely clean and oiled dragonet, “He sure is. Going to be the biggest of his hatching siblings if I guess correctly. Other than the gold, of course.” Tak’ril leaned over an unused bucket and washed his hands, then stood, drying them on his trousers as an afterthought.

“I sure am glad for the help; I would have been here till past supper time if not for you.” If Tak’ril could tell time in here right, supper would be about to start.

“If you want, you can join me at the table and we can break bread, unless you’ve already promised your company to another.”

tovaana

[tovaana]

Vavithan; Candidate

Yes, when he wrote his letter he would need to stay positive. He had felt and still felt confident about his decision to leave, so there was only to focus on the affection he had for his family.

He stepped back, glancing at the size of the dragon from head to tip, admiring his shiny hide. It was hard to imagine the dragon larger, even though he had seen large dragons before. When Tak’ril announced that he had been glad of the help, Vavithan felt disappointment… they were done. He put the tools down and lightly wiped his hands on his pants. He took a step back, not taking his eyes off the dragon, trying not to think about the letter that he would need to write now that they were done.

The man turned to Tak’ril at the invitation and grinned, relief flooding him. How could he have forgotten about evening meal? Had he been so distracted? “Sure.” He accepted the invite and helped Tak’ril clean up the tools he had gathered.

After rinsing his hands he walked with Tak’ril down to the dining hall. “You wouldn’t mind if my sister joined us? She doesn’t always, but she might.” He warned, realizing this the closer they got to the hall and the stronger the scents of the evening meal were.