Letters and Dragons

Writers: Avery, Jane
Date Posted: 9th October 2007

Characters: Kalesia, Swift
Description: Kalesia meets Swift and they have a talk over breakfast.
Location: Garnet Valley Hold
Date: month 5, day 3 of Turn 4

"Not many apprentices are up this early," Swift commented as he drew close to the table the young woman had chosen. "Isn't it against the unwritten rules of apprenticeship?"

"Maybe for lazy dolphineers." Kale said with a smile, her tone light to indicate it was a joke. "I'm a morning person." she explained, more seriously.

"I'm a 'whatever-shift-I'm-on' person," Swift admitted with a smile. "Do you want breakfast this morning or just klah?"

"Breakfast, please." Kale immediately answered. "Assuming I'm not up before the rest of the kitchen."

"Before the main service, but I can make something for you. Something cooked, or cereals and fruit?"

"Cereals and fruit is fine." Kale said. She hadn't realized it was so early, but perhaps her timezones were still a bit off. Or maybe, Seacraft discipline hadn't worn off. "So long as I'm not any trouble."
she added.

"People wanting to eat are never any trouble around here," Swift assured her. "I'll be back in a moment."

"Thanks." Kale told him. He seemed really familiar, but she couldn't quite place him. "Your name _is_ Swift, right?" She thought she'd heard it before from someone she knew.

"Yes, indeed. I work in the kitchens."

She smiled. "You're Yara's grandfather!" she said. Then, hesitantly, "Right?"

"Exactly right. Yara's one of my son's daughters. I'm very glad she's come here after not having seen her for so long. Do you know Yara?"

"I do." Kale said. "We met in the Northern Hall. She helped me when I was a junior apprentice with anatomy and healing. I just haven't learned what she taught well enough." she admitted sheepishly.

"Some subjects stick easier than others," Swift agreed kindly. "I'm glad she was able to help you. Now - just wait. I'll be back with something for you to eat."

"No problem."

When he returned Swift set a place in front of the young woman, and unloaded a small tray. "There you go. That should set you up for the day.

"Thank you." Kale said. "So you haven't seen Yara for awhile? You wrote to her, though, right?"

"We wrote all the time, from when she was a little girl."

"I love writing letters." Kale confessed. "My friend Skeltia helped raise me. She's a ship captain. I send letters to her by flit all the time."

"You're lucky to have that option. After Thread came we lost the dragonriders running letters around and now most come by sea."

"Sea takes longer, I know." Kale said. "You don't have a flit, then?"

"I do _now_, but he's only a recent addition. He's in the kitchens scrounging off the woman doing the butchering this morning."

She laughed. "So now that you have one, Yara's here, and you don't need to use him for your letters! It seems sort of funny that it worked that way.
How old is he?"

"Nearly two months and delightful. I do hope that I can still use him for notes, since my son - Yara's father - isn't staying."

"You ought to be able to. Seafoam took forever to learn, but she's not that bright. If you train yours, he ought to be a good carrier."

"Right now all he is is a good eater," Swift said with a laugh.

"They're a bit piggish, aren't they? What color is he?" Kale inquired curiously.

"Blue, but he's named 'Red'," the kitchen hand explained as he usually had to - something he hadn't considered when choosing the name.

"That's cute. Any reason for choosing it?"

"That I was running short of ideas?"

"That's reason enough. Good luck with training Red to carry." she said.
"How long have you been here?" she asked.

"I came with the Hall after storm destroyed the old Hall at Topaz. Over a Turn now."

"So you've been South awhile." She pondered that. "How is it, anywhere not the Hall- or the nearby Weyr? I mean, there's the female craftban here. Or have you not really been exposed to it?" Personally, she thought it was _barbaric_ to tell females they couldn't craft. Then again, she hadn't really met anyone who believed women couldn't craft.
Maybe Swift had and could share some perspective. Then again, at a female-permitting crafthall, maybe he had no idea.

"I think we're fairly well insulated from the local attitudes in the Hall - and more especially me in the kitchens," he added with a chuckle.
"You'd probably be better off asking the other female dolphineers how they've found reactions to their status."

Kale nodded. "I've not been outside of the Hall much since I've been here. Not even to the Weyr, although I've heard it's not too far of a walk. I've seen dragons sometimes while swimming from afar, though-
aren't they lovely?" For the girl with the sea in her blood, things that flew like dragons were strange. Beautiful, but strange.

"They are. I like to go and look at them," Swift admitted, thinking he hadn't had much time for that lately - not since Kateena arrived in his life.

"Had you ever seen them before?"

"From a distance only. When I was younger there were hardly any of them around - and those were all down south, here."

"I think the Hall is incredibly lucky to be so close to a Weyr. I hope we remain here." she said. "It's so different from the North, but in a good way. At least I have friends here."

"I'm sure you'd make friends wherever you go, Kalesia," Swift assured her. "Now, is there anything else I can get you?"

"No thank you." she said. "I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me."

"You're welcome," Swift said, leaving the apprentice to her breakfast.

Last updated on the October 9th 2007

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Letters and Dragons