Unjaded

Writers: Heather
Date Posted: 12th May 2024

Characters: K'lvin, Rasme, N'kayden
Description: Rasme's assigned a Candidate, against her wishes, to help with Piketh's bathing.
Location: Barrier Lake Weyrhold
Date: month 11, day 15 of Turn 11
Notes: Mentioned: Aydhan, N'kevyn, Casmari

Rasme

N'kayden

Rasme felt as though she had expressed multiple times that she did not
like having Candidates assigned to help bathe Piketh, but it never
failed that at least one was assigned to her anyway. Her mind flashed
back to her last conversation with K'lvin...

**Flashback**

"I am perfectly capable of washing my own dragon, Weyrlingmaster," she
said with her frostiest tone, her solitary blue eye narrowing
fiercely.

K'lvin, who wasn't the least bit afraid of the goldrider's bark,
merely steepled his hands together and rocked back in his chair. "I
understand that, Rasme, and I believe you. However, these Candidates
need a lot of physical work to prepare themselves to possibly be
dragonriders. They especially need to learn the joys of dragon
cleaning and oiling. What better way to do so, than to help riders of
large dragons?"

Rasme crossed her arms over her chest and blew a strand of her frizzy
blonde hair out of her face. "Have them wash your dragon then."

"I am. In fact, at this very moment Xmrenth is enjoying a bath
courtesy of two Candidates."

She cut her eyes at K'lvin, clearly unamused.

**End flashback**

She huffed a little sigh, wondering what young piece of crackdust they
would send her today.

"Nikhayden," a jovial-looking young man said, sticking his hand out to
Rasme. "It's a pleasure to meet you, ma'am. I've brought," he held up
a bucket, "all of the supplies necessary to give Piketh a good scrub
and oil. I even managed to snag a bit of the _scented_ sand for her
scrub. I think you'll approve."

**My word, does he ever quit talking?** she wondered, having never met
a Candidate so talkative before.

"Fine," she said, pressing a hand to her hair, which was woven into a
short, thick braid. "I'll take this side of Piketh and you can take
the other."

Nikhayden's brow furrowed a bit as he held up a hand. "Oh, uh, that
won't be necessary, ma'am. I'll scrub all of Piketh. You can sit and
supervise if you would like."

The retired goldrider's eyebrows disappeared up into her hairline in
surprise. Normally people, especially the young, quaked when they
spoke to her. Yet here this pup was telling _her_ how it was going to
be? .... She kind of liked it.

Rasme acquiesced by going up the lake shore a bit and finding a good
dry place to sit and watch. The young man, whom she guessed to be
about Casmari's age, stripped off his shirt and shoes, leaving behind
only a pair of swim shorts. He was certainly in fine shape, she
decided, and once he'd added a few pounds of manly muscle, he'd be
quite ripe for the plucking. **Perfect for Casmari,** she decided, the
wheels suddenly turning in her brain. She had never felt the need to
matchmake for any of her other children, they'd all been grown and out
of the way while she and Piketh were still an active pair.

But now with retirement and only the dragon infirmary to keep her
busy, she _did_ have a little time on her hands...

Nikhayden whistled an aimless tune softly while he set about lathering
the sand into a good thick froth and then began scrubbing it across
Piketh's pale, wheat-colored hide. **What a beauty,** he thought about
Piketh. The scars on the gold's abdomen and around her side flanks
caught his attention. He wondered how she had acquired them. At first,
he had thought that perhaps some thread-related issue had retired the
golden pair, but he knew those marks weren't from thread.

}:Could you brush that spot behind my foreleg? It itches.:{ Piketh
said in a soft, elegant voice, in contrast to Rasme's bristly bark.

Nikhayden froze in place for a moment before a slow smile spread
across his face. To have a dragon speak to you was a special honor.

"Don't get too thrilled," Rasme called down to Nikhayden. "She's a
gabber and talks to anyone who will provide a good scratch."

**Oh,** Nikhayden found himself chuckling, but he obliged the retired
queen her scratch nonetheless.

"You're Aydhan and N'kevyn's boy?" Rasme asked.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Do you have your hopes set on a dragon color?"

Nikhayden swiped his bangs out of his eyes. "Honestly? Any would be
fine by me. I can think of something amazing about every color."

"Oh?" Rasme's eyebrow arched. "Do tell."

"Well," he panted a little with exertion as he scrubbed on Piketh's
tail. "Bronzes are leaders, sure, but so are browns. Browns are
steadfast and measured. Blues are fast and agile. Greens are
everything that a bronze, brown, or blue is. They're fast and agile,
they carry the Weyr's fighting numbers in Thread, and they lead as
'thirds and Weyrlingstaff, and so on. So the way I see it, I couldn't
possibly be disappointed by any color dragon that chooses me."

**And I'll be the _best_ Weyrling this Weyr has ever seen regardless
of color,** he thought with self-confidence.

**Completely unjaded, this one,** Rasme thought with amusement.

"Well, I look forward to seeing the outcome of your journey, then."
She wondered if he truly meant what he said, or if he said it because
it was the right thing to say. Would he really feel the same
impressing a green dragon as he would impressing a bronze? Only time
would tell, she supposed.

Last updated on the May 13th 2024

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Unjaded