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Who: Emmi, Dalanor, Noemie, Sephie, Rodric, Gerand, Carianna, Tavik, Zahava, Chihanne, Shirina, Myglin
Where: Great Hall, Harper Hall
What: Emmi performs her Gather peice... and walks the tables.
Great Hall
The Great Hall more than lives up to its name, stretching away from you into
the distance. The enormous stage lies to the south, taking up an entire
quarter of the room's space. A densely woven, harper blue curtain
embellished with a random design of white harper badges conceals the bare
boards when not in use. An apron curves out around the stage, with shallow
flights of steps leading upwards at either end. Thick plank benches, some of
them padded with harper blue cushions, are stacked neatly out of the way
against the walls when not needed for a performance. The floor is bare,
polished to a faint gloss. Stored against the east wall are several casks of
wines and ales, used when the Hall opens its doors to all on gala occasions.
Carved into the west walls are several breathtakingly wide windows. When the
thick, hinged metal shutters are pulled back one can watch the happenings in
the courtyard. The north wall supports a huge tapestry, a Gather scene with
several Harpers entertaining a dancing throng.
The broad doors lead back into the Main Hall.
Noemie enters the Great Hall, once more gesturing about. "And this is the
Great Hall." Obviously. In one corner, a girl is sitting quietly tuning a
gitar, looking rather worried. Though her hair's raven black, the exact
opposite of Noemie's platinum blonde, their faces are so similar that it's
clear their related. Noemie spots her immediately, rushing over to greet
her. "Emmi!" she calls, and at the sound the dark haired girl looks up and
smiles.
Emmi stands, rushing forward to embrace her sister. "Noe! I'm so glad you
could come. Who's this?" she asks, looking towards the Istan visitor that's
come along with the greenrider.
Sephie looks over towards Emmi and she smiles, nodding her head. "Hello. I'm
Sephie. I'm the Hairstylist, well one of them at Ista." She says, holding
her hand out towards Emmi. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
Noemie grins. "She's good at it, too. Look!" And she swirls her head a bit,
showing off a new haircut. "I offered to bring her along in exchange. She's
never been between before!" The dark-haired girl nods a bit solemnly. "Glad
you could come," she says, distractedly scanning the room, trying to gauge
turnout.
Dalanor comes into the great hall cradling a tapered hard leather case as
though it were as precious as a dragon egg. He looks about then and spies a
few familiar faces so he heads on over.
Emmi notes the arrival of her fellow apprentice, eagerly calling him over.
"Good! You're here! Is that the viola? Have you tuned it already? Practiced
enough?" Her barrage of questions betrays her nervousness.
"Well, I'm just lucky." Sephie says before she looks at Emmi and smiles at
her. "YOu have a wonderful sister." She says, trying to catch up with the
conversation but she stops talking as Emmi notes another apprentice.
Dalanor waves Emmi away from hovering over the delicate package. "Yes yes or
so we'll find out soon enough. I've enough jitters just thinking about it
and you'll know its tuned or the Masterharper will have my hide." He grins.
"So who all do we have here?" He looks to Noemie then and grins. "Ahh. Ista
right? Noemie was it? Naijath's rider?"
Noemie nods. "Good memory, Apprentice," she says, smiling. "I don't want to
keep you two, though. It looks like you should be preparing. Sephie, let's
find some choice seats, shall we?" Emmi seems a bit relieved to not have to
entertain and prepare simultaneously, and turns to Dalanor. "Okay, then.
Let's double-check to make sure. Then give me an 'E'?"
"Good luck you two." Sephie says as she looks towards Noemie and nods.
"Alright, you lead. I'll follow." The young woman says as she moves to find
a nice place to sit. "It's starting to fill up. I'm anxious for your
sister."
Gerand strolls into the hall from the outside, the Apprentice Master moving
toward the front row and glancing around to get his bearings within the
crowd as he settles into a seat.
Rodric steps through the doors in quiet conference with a journeywoman,
nodding a few times before breaking away to join Gerand in the front row. He
smiles encouragingly Emmi's way as he passes and sits.
Dalanor blinks at Emmi. Eyes the case. Then mumbles something under his breath
before moving away from the throng and getting out the precious viola.
Placing it gingerly to his chin, he plucks an E twice before nodding and
fetching the bow from the case and offering Emmi a sustained note. A brow
lifts in query of her readiness.
Carianna smiles as she arrives, glancing about the hall with delight. Quietly
she heads over to a vacant seat and sinks into it seeming please to get off
her feet for a time.
Emmi looks about the Hall as it fills, humming the note along with Dalanor's
instrument and solidifying her opening note in her head. "Okay," she says.
"Remember, the opening verse is a capella. Then you'll join in immediately
at it's last line." If she sounds bossy, it's only because she's nervous.
"Are they all seated? Should I begin?"
Gerand glances up toward the stage with a nod of his head and an encouraging
smile before glancing about at a few stragglers making the way in. He
notices the Masterharper sitting down as well, offering a polite, silent
nod.
Dalanor nods patiently to Emmi, maybe its a forced patience. He's only been
practicing this piece for the last two weeks. Still, he takes a deep breath,
nods, and... waits.
Sephie looks over towards Noemie and whispers. "She looks really nervous. She
shouldn't be.. I'm sure that all of these people will love her immensely."
She offers in a quiet, soft voice.
Tavik wanders in from the main hall, glancing around, his expression
brightening as he finally finds the right place. "Aha!" he says, then claps
a hand over his mouth to shut himself up. Grinning, he makes his way over to
one side where he can watch unobtrusively.
Having shed and left her riding jacket behind, Zahava now wears her shawl
looped over her arms as she and Chihanne enter the hall together. "I think
we're nearly late," she murmurs to the greenrider, pointing towards a pair
of seats they can claim, heading that way.
Carianna's jade eyes sparkle as she listens to the voices around her and
watches the stage Harpers as they prepare. She folds her hands on her lap
and for the entertainment to begin with anticipation.
Rodric waits until the hall has filled at least partway, grinning over at
Gerand then he rises and walks up to the stage. "May I have your attention
please." He waits for some of the chatter to die down and then projects his
voice so he's heard at the back of the room. "First, thank you all for
coming to the Gather, the Hall is honored by your presence. Second, I'd like
to point out some refreshments laid out to the side of the room, you're
welcome to avail yourselves of food and drink after the performance.
Finally, in her debut Gather performance, I'd like to introduce Senior
Apprentice Emmi, who will be singing "Caria's Ballad" for us this evening,
accompanied by Apprentice Dalanor on the viola." He starts clapping as he
ducks off the stage and nods Emmi's way.
Sephie claps loudly for Emmi and nods at her as the man walks off of the
stage.. She doesn't want to be too boisterous, however so she simply beams
at her and looks to her sister. "I hope she does well."
"Well," Chihanne begins, her hands searching for pockets which don't exist in
her current outfit. "nearly isn't the same as certainly." She points out in
a quiet tone as her storm colored eyes scan the room at the other people who
are around looking for familiar faces even as she follows her sister's
gesture and heads towards the indicated seats.
Gerand gives some brief applause of his own, looking about and spotting a
familiar face here and there to which he offers polite nods before leaning
back and settling in to watch the performance.
Carianna claps lightly before settling in comfortably to watch the
performance.
Applauding loudly, Tavik grins over towards Emmi and gives her a thumbs-up,
then quiets down and waits for the performance to begin. Idly, he glances
around at the others gathered, eyes lingering here and there appraisingly.
Emmi gives a half-smile as she's introduced, then waits for the crowd to
settle before she speaks. Her voice, at first, is shaky, but as she
continues and adjusts to being in front of the crowd, it evens. "Good
evening," she says. "Thank you for coming. This is a piece written at the
beginning of the last Pass. Though it's a tragic ballad, it's main message
is one of hope." She takes a deep, harper-trained breath, and her voice
rings through the hall, clear and note-perfect.
"Gather 'round, gather near--
Sit, for now, and lend an ear.
Listen, Hold, and listen, Weyr."
The song begins with Emmi's voice alone, and only after the first verse does
the accompaniment begin.
Dalanor lifts the bow to string once the initial verse is complete, the 'a
capella' being joined by the attentive strokes of the string in a reply to
the request of Emmi's voice.
Zahava settles into the seat, quickly adding her applause to the others, then
resting her hands in her lap as the song begins, tilting her head to the
side slightly as though it will help her listen. When the accompaniment
begins, she smiles slightly.
Rodric regains his seat next to Gerand, and folds his arms across his chest,
head tilted upward a little, to listen to the piece. "Should be interesting
with the viola instead of a gitar," he murmurs to the Apprentice Master.
Chihanne flops down into her seat with a bit less grace than her sister.
Hearing the announcement, the younger blonde had joined in with the applause
only to allow it to fade as the singer catches her attention. Sitting
straight in her chair, she allows her hands to rest palm down against her
legs as her grey eyes linger on Emmi's face.
Gerand gives a slight nod of his head to the Masterharper at his observation,
leaning in and whispering back in a quiet voice. "I'd not heard it this way
before.." His hands are folded across his lap as he listens to the two on
stage, watching Dalanor's bow work.
Carianna's slippered foot moves to the beat of the musical accompaniment, her
smile broadening as she listens to the singers words.
Sephie's smile broadens even more proudly as she listens to Emmi's performance
and the excellent bow work from Dalanor. "This is really good." She tells
Noemie. "I've never been to a gather." A soft sigh comes to Sephie's lips.
"This is great."
As the viola joins Emmi's voice, the tale of the ballad begins. It is the
story of a beautiful holder's daughter who loves a stable boy-- but, as in
all ballads, he does not love her back. The tune is a little sad, though
lighthearted enough to reflect accurately the troubles of young love.
Finally, at last, the boy admits he's loved the girl the entire time, but
was so sure that she wouldn't return his love that he had never admitted it.
The tune becomes more upbeat, and by the tone of the song, their requited
love is merely the beginning of their story.
Noemie nods to Sephie, giving the younger girl a smile before she turns her
attention back to her sister.
"Me either," Rodric says back, sotto voce, "I ran it with her a few times on
gitar ..." he trails off to pay full attention, head tilted slightly to one
side.
Zahava glances over at Chihanne and gives her a wry smile, then refocuses her
attention on the singer.
Dalanor coaxes a lilting refrain from the strings. Once glad in its
brightness, then mournfully pulling upon the heartstrings. It is
exhilherating and frightening both, gliding across the register as one might
expect a ride adragonback to be. Eventually, the music soars as only love
must!
Carianna's eyes close allowing the melody and words of the song to wash over
her, imagining the story in her own mind. A contented sigh comes from her as
she listens.
Chihanne starts to lean forward, bending slightly at the waist as she props
herself up with her elbows on her knees. Hands clasped together she listens
intently to the music. Wide eyes absorb the lyrical sound as much as those
who are producing it.
The couple's life is happy, for a while. Then, one day, a dragon arrives on
Search. The tune reflects the arrival of the blue dragon, describing him
through the music as Emmi's words explain his coming.
"That day, another saw in my love all that I had seen.
The blue dragon looked at him, his eyes a whirling green
"You're for the weyr!" His rider gaily called.
"I must go," my beloved said,
And, too soon, away he'd fled,
A-dragonback, blinking away *between*."
The happiness of the song again turns mournful, as the girl laments the
departure of her love. Emmi sings from the perspective of the holder girl,
but it's easy to forget she's merely performing, so far does she slip into
her part.
Sephie's eyes are locked on the two producing the beautiful music and she
gives a little sigh at the story. Her eyes tear up a little at the story,
being pulled in by the performance.
Zahava's cheek ripples slightly as the song goes on, and she sits back in her
seat, settling in her seat, lips pressed together.
Even the Masterharper is starting to blink a little, eyes suspiciously bright
as the performance goes on.
Low tones resonate from the viola as Dalanor coaxes a draconic presence from
the instrument, bright words offered by the rider interspersed within. The
brightness ends with mournful resignation and the viola silences with a
suddenness.
Carianna wipes at the moisture that dampens her cheek, lost in the performance
playing out on the stage.
Chihanne wrinkles her nose, eyes shifting over towards Zahava. The action is
partially masked by the fall of hair that hangs loosely about her face.
Straightening, she tries to mask the somewhat figety motion as she continues
to steal glances at her sister from the corners of her eye.
When the hatching day comes, Caria, the holder's daughter, comes to the Weyr.
She watches as her lover takes to the sands, already feeling as if he's been
lost to her forever. And sure enough, his lifemate is upon those sands--
"The beauty of the tiny bronze was clear--
But then I heard my father whisper in my ear.
"He won't come back to you. He's bound now to the weyr."
I tried to watch him with the same joy
That shone from dragon and from boy."
The song is truly mournful now, the poor girl's heart broken:
"I cried so long they sought the healer,
Who simply said there was no cure."
But the tune seems expectant at the same time it is mournful, and something
else is sure to happen-- the story is not over.
Gerand has his eyes closed, so any signs of emotion are more easily masked by
the Apprentice Master as he listens carefully to the strains of the viola
and the pitch of Emmi's vocals.
Sephie's fingers reach up to wipe away tears that are openly flowing as she
looks from the performers towards Noemie who nods at her. She gives the
rider a smile before she turns back to Emmi and Dalanor. She gives them both
a big smile.
Now that she's settled back, Zahava's expression remains impassive as she
listens.
Silence is broken with a soft vibrato from the viola, a low hum which grows in
intensity as the moment of hatching nears. A note, plucked amidst the hum,
strikes the pulse of breaking heart until the hum ceases with one last
pluck. But has it? Softly now, almost unheard, a single note is sustained
with a slow arc of the bow across the strings, Dalanor's attention firmly
upon the instrument he plays.
Carianna continues to listen, her petite hand lifting from time to time to
brush against her cheeks again. Spellbound her attention doesn't leave the
stage area.
Chihanne looks thoughtful as she listens, remaining quiet and making an effort
not to fidget.
Finally, one day, Caria's lover returns to the hold, now a fully-fledged
bronzerider. The music rises to portray a tense reunion between the two,
Emmi's face reflecting the confusion and complexity of the encounter, as she
sings:
"We stumbled, trying to find the words
We thought would tumble from our mouths.
He explained to me how loving a dragon was.
I tried and tried my best to understand,
But with a voice absent from your mind, you never fully can.
I felt an ache in places his dragon must have filled."
But, after a time, the two realize that, though they've both changed, the
parts of each other they loved are still intact, and Caria returns with the
bronzerider to the Weyr. The tension of the song breaks into joy, though a
soft, foreboding strain remains in the music, enough to send shivers up
one's spine, inexplicably, despite the happiness of the tune.
Sephie's mouth opens to cheer but she manages to restrain herself and she sits
there, trying to keep from crying more than she already has. She looks at
Noemie for the moment, but she's engrossed in the story so she turns her
attention back to the music and story.
The viola burst forth into energy as the dragon appears in the song, tension
resonating in its urgency and confusion of words. Slowly, the music softens
but there is a minor chord sowing dischord into the harmony. Even as the joy
grows, so does the dissonance seek to raise the hairs.
Carianna's hands lower to hug her chest when the story twists, but when the
musical stains change her jade eyes begin to round, her head slowly
beginning to shake with worry. Still she listens.
Even though Rodric /knows/ the song, he's leaning forward in his seat a
little, head bowed now as he listens, the dissonance in the viola making him
fidget a little.
Zahava's nose wrinkles slightly, but otherwise, there is no overt reaction to
the music or lyrics as she listens.
It is after Caria moves to the Weyr, becoming the bronzerider's weyrmate, that
a Pass begins once more, and Thread begins to fall on Pern. Her love and
his bronze dragon fight bravely, and Emmi sings of their valour, and that of
the other dragons, with her eyes shining. But it is then that the final
movement of the song begins, and the melody turns with finality to sorrow
once more. Thread falls awry, consuming the bronze dragon's wing, pulling
dragon and rider *between*.
"The kreen of dragons peirces you so deep,
You can only stand, you cannot begin to weep
Until the echoes of the sounds leave your skin.
Anguish is the closest word that we can find
To describe the emotion felt by Dragonkind,
Their understanding of loss running deeper than our own."
Caria's pain might as well been Emmi's own, as her face reflects the words she
sings, so consumed that she's nearly forgotten she sings before an audience.
Gerand can't help but let a visible wince show on his features as his eyes do
finally open, listening to the tune with a furrowed brow and a more easily
seen attempt to try and focus on the playing of the viola rather than the
words.
Sephie almost manages to catch a gasp and then places both of her hands over
her mouth as she hears the fate of the couple. She looks to Noemie, tears
welling quickly up in her eyes as she turns back to the pair singing and
playing. She is trying to control her emotions but she is so caught up that
she finally hides her face with her hair, rubbing her eyes furiously
Zahava's lips press together as her cheeks lose a little of their color, and
the woman shifts in her seat slightly, glancing towards the door.
Chihanne's pensive expression twists as her lips tug downwards, her hands
tugging absentmindedly at the hem of her tunic before she sends a glance
towards her sister once more. Her gaze then falls downward, intent on the
floor. She misses the look Zahava sends towards the door, though a slightly
impulsive urge causes her to reach out in search of Zahava's hand.
Sustaining the dischord as but a minor strain, the note is all but forgotten
in the fury and flurry of notes which invoke valour and threadfall. The
intensity builds until finally a single keening note reaches to the back of
the wall and beyond. It is a single note, sustained and refusing to be
ignored that finally fades within its own echoes. The viola begins anew with
smooth, tearful notes, streaming down the bow even as Dalanor himself fights
back the tears.
Carianna openly weeps, her thoughts going to her own Weyrmate. Thankfully an
Igen Rider to her left offers her a handkerchief which she uses to try and
dry her eyes.
Rodric's hands rub past each other, one palm then the other, eyes downturned,
as the music builds to that pitch.
At last the ballad comes to a close. The song slows, melodic and sad, Emmi
singing Caria's final words.
"My story is one of many that the Harpers have to tell;
Many others could suit a ballad just as well.
There are happier stories not sung in a minor key.
But, lest you leave me saddened, walk away from here
With hope in Hall and Hold, with hope in Dragonweyr,
For it is this, /hope/, that we need, not fear.
"For as long as we have faith in dragons that fly above,
The last of us to lose will not be the last to love."
The last words echo through the hall, Emmi's voice dying out softly as the
last note is sung, and at the very end she stays, unmoving, feeling the
final vibrations of the viola die as well.
Sephie's furiously biting on her bottom lip to keep from bawling out again
before she stands up at the end of the song and begins to applaud loudly.
She pauses in her applause to wipe a tear or two away from her features
before she begins again.
Dalanor brings the bow to a stop but allows the strings to resonate until they
spend themselves. He pauses for a count of five before removing the viola
from his chin and straightening to face the crowd behind and to Emmi's
right.
Shirina slips into the hall, just in time to hear the music fading off. She
hovers in the back, just listening and watching.
Noemie jumps to her feet beside Sephie, applauding loudly for her sister,
beaming. "She did well, didn't she?" she says, turning to the girl as she
claps. "Good piece to have chosen, too."
It takes a few moment before Carianna is able to join the wave of rising
patrons, her clapping mixed with an occasional need to dab at her cheeks
with the handkerchief.
Myglin had snuck in late, just in time to hear the final, tragic section of
the piece. He is left trembling, stalwart Smithcrafter though he is, washed
over with the emotion of the piece. He takes a deep breath, turns and slinks
out of the hall.
Gerand remains seated as the back of one hand brushes across his forehead and
eyes, grinning as he then moves to begin applauding for both Apprentices on
stage. "Excellent, well done, both of you!" he calls over as the final
strains from Dalanor's viola playing cease.
For less than a moment, Emmi stands dumbly as the crowd breaks into applause.
Then she's brought back to reality by the sound, snapped out of the reverie
of her performance. She turns to Dalanor. "So. They liked it?" she
half-whispers, loud enough to be heard over the noise.
Tavik applauds quietly, smiling. He gives both performers a thumbs up, then
applauds again. Straightening from where he'd been leaning against the back
of the hall, he stretches a bit, cracking his back.
Zahava gives Chihanne's hand quick squeeze and then withdraws to clap as
others begin to do so. She leans over to murmur to the greenrider quietly.
"Shall we slip out before the crowd? I wouldn't mind a bit of dancing to
shake that off," she comments. "Something actually... happy, perhaps,
anyway..."
Dalanor glances to Emmi, smiling, and nodding for her to look back to the
crowd. Momentarily forgetting just how precious the instrument is that he
holds, he gestures with both hands full for her to take a bow .
Sephie nods to Noemie as she reaches up and wipes the tears away from her face
as she speaks to the rider next to her. "I'm a mess, aren't I?" She wonders
before looking back to the group and applauding loudly again. "Woohoo!" She
says, clapping again.
The Masterharper also takes a moment, then looks up beaming at both Senior
Apprentices and he rises to join his applause to everyone else's. "Bravo!
Bravo!" he calls out, grinning from ear to ear.
Emmi is cued, thankfully, by Dalanor, and takes a few steps forward to bow. As
she does, she looks through the audience, trying to spot familiar faces in
the crowd. She catches the Masterharper's grin, then the smiles on her
parent's faces and those of her sisters, and a smile-- a real one-- breaks
on her face. She bows again, for good measure.
Chihanne nearly forgets to applaud, being a touch preoccupied. She does join
in hastily, though, when she sees the others around her doing that. Looking
up, her chin dips quickly in a nod. "Let's." She murmurs in quiet agreement;
rising to her feet to make a quiet exit from the hall.
Waiting for the applause to die down just a little, Rodric returns to the
stage before Emmi has a chance to leave it and stands at the edge clapping
still, until the room quiets further. "Well done! Well done!" he calls out
loudly enough to be heard at least in the first few rows. "And if I may beg
your attention once more please ..."
Noemie begins to laugh, tears still wet on her face from the performance. "A
bit, yes," she says honestly to Sephie, then turns her attention as the
Masterharper takes the stage, curious at what he has to say.
Gerand leans forward in his seat, resting his elbows against his knees as the
Masterharper calls for the room's attention. An eyebrow rises, and he looks
on curiously with his gaze flickering about the room curiously.
Dalanor looks askance of the Masterharper with a quirious brow but he stays
silent and steps to one side so that Rodric can be the focus of attention.
Thinking of the viola then, he moves to put it away.
Sephie finishes her applauding when the masterharper speaks and gives a bit of
an embarassed giggle to Noemie. "Hush, it's not my fault." She says, beaming
at Emmi.
Emmi, too, turns her attention to the Masterharper, giving Dalanor a glance as
he puts away the valuable instrument.
Carianna returns to her seat, offering Handkerchief back to the Igen Rider,
jade eyes turning back to the stage.
Shirina takes a seat in the back of the hall, wondering if maybe she might get
to hear the masterharper perform, or perhaps she's already missed that.
Either way, she watches the stage.
Rodric clears his throat as the crowd hushes a little. "I'm sure that after
hearing a performance such as that, that I don't need to elaborate much on
Emmi's abilities as a Harper, they've been fully demonstrated this evening.
With that in mind, after due consideration and consultation with the
Apprentice Master," he nods to Gerand, and the other Masters at the Hall,
that we have determined to raise Emmi to the rank of Journeywoman.
Traditionally, we would ask you to walk the tables, Emmi, but I hope that a
walk around the Great Hall will suffice?" The Master's eyes twinkle as he
speaks, drawing out the Senior Apprentice's new knot out of his pocket.
Sephie blinks a few times and looks to Noemie, tugging on her arm a bit. "Hey!
Hey! She just got Journeyman, so now she can get posted!" She says, turning
her attention to Emmi to watch her walk along the great hall.
Emmi is literally speechless for a moment-- a hard thing for a Harper to
accomplish. Finally, she finds words. "Why-- of course. I--- Thank you,
Masterharper," is what finally emerges, her eyes widening at the sight of
her new knot.
Carianna cheers loudly, her hands beating a steady beat on her lap, slippered
feet beating out a matching rhymed beat on the floor.
Gerand has a somewhat sly looking grin beginning to form on his face as Rodric
begins to speak, his eyes shifting over and watching Emmi's response as the
Masterharper continues speaking. When Emmi finally realizes just what's
going on, the Apprentice Master gives a warm grin in her direction - his own
workload having decreased ever so slightly at that moment.
Tavik sticks his pinkies into his mouth and lets out a whistle, then laughs
and cheers heartily, clapping his hands. "Well done, Emmi!" he calls, giving
her another thumbs-up.
Shirina perks up. Her first day there and she gets to see someone walk the
tables, or so to speak. She lets out a loud cheer for the apprentice she
hasn't met.
During the hubbub, Rodric ceremoniously removes Emmi's Apprentice knot and
replaces it with the shiny new Journeyman one, and offers her the old one to
keep if she so chooses, then holds out a hand, to help her down off the
stage and take that walk.
Dalanor glances up from putting away the viola and almost laughs. Its not a
harsh laugh but one of honest surprise and joy. He stops himself though and
latches the case before straightening and offering his own applause to the
event.
Emmi accepts her old knot as a memento, slipping it away into a pouch at her
waist. Then she accepts Rodric's hand, slipping off the stage to begin her
ceremonial walk-- tables or Great Hall, it doesn't seem to matter. She's
beaming-- looking a bit as if someone should pinch her, to assure her it's
actually happening.
Myglin has snuck back in at the sound of the Masterharper's voice, and a broad
grin breaks out across his face. "Walk, Emmi, walk," he calls in the
traditional chant for a newly-promoted journeyman. The craft doesn't matter,
only the act of promotion.
Sephie beams at Emmi, giggling at that before she looks back to Noemie. "I'm
really proud for her!" She says, looking over to Emmi and watches her walk.
More and more voices join in on that traditional chant: Walk! Walk! Walk Emmi,
Walk! as Rodric leads the newly made Journeywoman around the Hall.
Gerand starts clapping his hands in time with the chanting, standing up at
last and adding his voice to that of the rest, "Walk, walk, walk!" along
with a pause in his clapping rythm to gesture a circle around the room to
the new Journeywoman.
Shirina gets into the festivities of the event and joins in the chanting.
A twinge of jealousy perhaps? Dalanor watches the walking Emmi with envy for a
moment before he too picks up the rythmic clapping. "Walk, walk, walk,
walk!" Yeah... he's still an apprentice. Ahh well. His time will come.
Emmi looks from face to face as the chant goes up around the Hall, walking
alongside the Masterharper. She catches the faces of her father and mother
and her youngest sister as she passes them, and they let up a cheer. Then
Noemie-- what luck that her sister's here for this. Or was it planned that
way? It all seems a bit like a dream, and Emmi's eyes shine with joy.
Carianna's voice joins the chanting and in true baker style her slippered feet
keep beat with each word. "Walk! Walk!"
Sephie doesn't know how to do it correctly so she simply cheers and waves at
Emmi, almost woohooing at her again. She of course refrains from saying
anything as she's not in a craft.
Noemie's face nearly matches her sisters. To Sephie, she says, "You're proud
for her? I'm-- well. Proud's an understatement." Then she joins in the chant
once more-- "Walk! Walk! Walk, Emmi, Walk!"
All the way around the Hall, they go, Apprentices and Journeymen and some
Masters all joining in and finally, Rodric stops back near Emmi's family and
steps back. "Refreshments are over on the tables, or the Gather Grounds are
still open until everyone falls down with fatigue!" he calls out and then
fades away into the background.
Emmi quickly falls into tight embraces from her mother and her youngest
sister, and finally Noemie, once she's made her way over to the group. Her
father gives her a gruff, "Congratulations," and though his expression is
stiff there's a great deal of pride in it for his eldest daughter. Together,
as a family, they make their way over to the refreshments.
Gerand makes his way gradually through the lingering crowd toward the
refreshments, merely grinning a little bit to himself as he watches Emmi's
response to the whole scene. Catching the sight of Emmi and her father, the
younger Master grins at the Instrument Master's reaction to her promotion.
He reaches down for a glass and some wine after a few moments.
Carianna stands giving the hall a quick once over the heads off knowing she
still has duties back home to preform before retiring for the night.
Carianna pushes open the great wooden doors and floods the room with the
sounds of the hall before she passes through and the doors swing shut once
more.
Shirina shifts, feeling slightly out of place during the current event, but
she's on her feet at the comment about refreshments. She makes her way over
to the table, hoping perhaps to catch the eye of Dalanor, the only person in
the room she happens to recognize at the moment.
Dalanor is just departing the stage, moving along the fringe of the world on
his way back towards the exit. He espies Shirina and gives her a little
wave.
Emmi's family chatters among themselves, Emmi and Noemie explaining more in
depth to Sephie what walking the tables signifies, as the Istan girl sticks
close to her rider friend. As they speak, Emmi pours herself a glass of
wine, determined to celebrate properly. As she begins to take a sip, she
notices Gerand in the crowd. "Oh-- I simply must thank him," She says to her
family, excusing herself and making her way over to the Apprentice Master.
Shirina perks up at the wave from Dalanor. She grabs a snack from the table
and heads over to him. "I only caught the end of your performance but that
was really good! I don't think I could ever do something like that. Will I
learn do you think?" she asks, looking anxiously at the stage, not
particularly noticing if Dalanor is listening to her or not.
Gerand watches the nearby apprentices as he stands by the table full of
snacks, seeming pleased as Shirina and Dalanor strike up a conversation.
After a few moments, he spots Emmi coming closer and offers her a warm grin,
"Starting to feel it yet?"
Dalanor pauses in his slinking to converse, a laugh escaping him finally. "Of
course. If you mean to learn. You'll have plenty of time for that, never
fear." He looks thoughtfully at the case. "I'll admit I'm better at this
than I am singing. I've a fair voice but not the range of a dedicated
singer." He doesn't seem that put out by it.
Emmi shakes her head. "No. Not really," she admits. "It's all just a dream for
right now. I always feel a little like I'm floating after a performance..."
She struggles to explain the exact feeling. "And so now-- well. In any case.
Thank you, Master Gerand. For deeming me worthy of this knot, as well as for
all the instruction you've given me."
Shirina grins at Dalanor. "I've never had an instrument to try to play. Will
that be something I get to do here or will they make me stick just to what
Amran said he was bringing me here for? Because I want to learn it all,
well, if they let me of course, because I still need to actually be
accepted. Do you know when that will happen?" she asks him. She's got
someone to talk to, she's not likely letting him go far just yet.
Myglin watches all of this with a faintly envious smile. Oh well, Smithcraft
does have the reputation of having the lengthiest apprenticeship of all the
Crafts -- his time will come. But right now duty fights curiosity -- should
I stay or should I go? -- and keeps him rivited to his spot at the back of
the Hall.
Gerand listens to Emmi with a grin, "I hadn't expected as much, it may be a
day or two. But it will come." he offers warmly, "Bah, I can't take the
credit for that much, Emmi. It's natural talent that got you where you are."
he flashes her a wink.
Dalanor musses his face into a disapproving frown of disbelief. "Feh. Of
course not. You'll learn instruments as well as voice. Just because you want
to focus in voice doesn't mean the Hall doesn't want you well rounded.
Myself, I'm studying diplomacy with the Master but I can still sing and
play. Even the archivists can keep a beat..." Here he grows quiet to a
whisper. "Most of them anyway." He winks.
Emmi gives that expression that signifies Emmi's version of a laugh. "Natural
talent? Then what were these last six-- nearly seven-- Turns for?" She sips
her wine contemplatively for a moment. "A day or two, I'm sure. Now what's
to happen to me-- am I to be posted? Or am I supposed to worry about that
when I've finished celebrating?"
Shirina giggles. "Well I don't know that I want to focus on singing, because I
love to tell stories too. Especially to groups of people. Though no one at
home will really listen to me anymore. I mean, they /listen/ but they get
tired of me. My ma says I'm a lot to handle but I don't think so. I'm just
curious about everything and I like to know things. She says I ask too many
questions too. Do you think I ask too many questions?" she wonders to the
older apprentice. She glances over at Emmi. "It's awfully exciting to see
something like that. How long have you been here, are you ready to be a
journeyman too or is that still a ways off for you?" she blathers at him.
Gerand can't help but laugh in reply to Emmi's question, tipping his head to
her and offering with a sly grin. "Polish. Just like any gem, you need to
polish it to make it truly shine." he explains, "As far as posting, don't
worry about it just yet. Enjoy the night." he reaches over and offers her a
glass of the same wine he'd just picked up.
Dalanor turns his attention to Gerand thoughtfully. "Soon? Maybe. Hard to say.
I try not to think about it." But he does if the length of time his eyes
linger on Emmi are any guess. "Have you considered composition?" He
inquires, returning his attention to Shirina. "If you like to sing and like
to write, it seems the right fit to me."
Emmi accepts the glass, taking a sip. "That I will," she reassures him.
"Though I'm excited for all of that, too. I can worry about it tomorrow. Or
the day after that." The wine and the celebration have begun to go to her
head, and she smiles at the Apprentice Master. "With all that, I didn't get
to ask. What did you think of my performance?"
Shirina falls silent for a moment as she watches Dalanor's reaction to her
question. "Oh..." she says for once not sure what to say, but only for a
moment. "Well you were really wonderful up there, I'm sure there's not much
more time for you to have left." she says cheerfully. "You're friends with
her, right? Well then go be happy for her!" she grins, reaching to give the
man a push towards Emmi.
Emmi has just turned to go find Dalanor amidst the crowd, and meets him
halfway, thanks to Shirina's push. "Dalanor!" She calls brightly. "Thank you
once again for accompanying me, and on short notice. It was wonderful, don't
you think?" The wine has clearly made her a bit more cheerful, far less
serious, than usual.
Dalanor is pushed? Looking over his shoulder at Shirina, he laughs confusedly.
"Hey, woah. I hardly know her!" But then she did just get her rank and its
only right. He relents and turns to face. Emmi. Right there in front of him.
He adjusts the collar on his tunic, grinning. "You're quite welcome. I..
well.. I didn't know quite /what/ to expect. I'd been spending so much time
getting the bridging just right with my fingers that I hadn't put it all
together in my head. That was quite a moving piece. Where ever did you find
it?"
Shirina grins as Emmi and Dalanor chat about their performance, hovering
slightly behind the young man and watching the newly knotted Journeyman with
a look of awe. For once, she says nothing, letting the two of them talk.
"Where did I find it? Oh-- in the archives, some place." Emmi stammers a bit.
"Yes, of course. Did some digging to find just the right piece. And it was,
wasn't it?" She takes a steadying sip of her wine. As she does, Shirina is
noticed behind Dalanor. "And oh, who's this?"
Dalanor regards Emmi thoughtfully a moment before the distraction of the query
makes him glance to Shirina. "Ahh! This is Miss Shirina. She desires to be
an apprentice. Just moved in today in fact which means its likely a done
thing. Just a matter of placements in classes really. Master Gerand will see
to that soon enough I'm sure." He smiles reassuringly to Shirina.
Emmi gives her odd little half-smile-- what on someone else would be a wide
beam, what might be a little unnerving to someone who doesn't know the new
Journeyman. "Well, then. Welcome! How fitting. Master Gerand loses one
apprentice and gains another in the same day. Where are you from, Shirina?"
She's far more verbose and friendly than usual-- Shirina's met her on a good
day.
Shirina perks up, about to introduce herself when Dalanor does the honors.
"Thanks." she says to him softly before turning back to Emmi. "Journeyman
Amran let me ride with him. He came in for the gather, I'm sure he's
performed today." she grins. "He's been ever so nice. Actually all the folks
here have been ever so nice." she grins at Dalanor, making sure he knows
he's once such nice person. She glances back to Emmi. "A cothold a bit north
of Benden Hold." she answers with a grin.
Dalanor steps back from the two women and their chattings to watch. He's
already had plenty of time to chat with Shirina and so he nods encouragingly
to her as the journeywoman begins her interrogation.
Emmi nods. "Benden Hold. Never been there," she muses. "Of course. I've never
been much of anywhere. Just to Ista Weyr. Guess that's going to change now,
though." She looks over at Dalanor, a bit apologetically, hoping things
aren't awkward between them. "Your day is coming soon, I'm sure. Anyway, I
/did/ apprentice a bit before you."
Shirina grins. "I've actually only been there once myself. And that was on my
way here. I've never really been much of anywhere. Our cothold was fairly
self sufficient, and we were on trade routes so anything we needed we got as
the trains came through." she explains, talking rather quickly. She grins at
Dalanor, seeming to claim him as her first, and currently only, friend at
the hall.
Dalanor gives a casual shrug. "Not a worry. Really. Just be happy alright? If
you're happy, I'll be happy. Simple. After all, you are what we aspired to.
Do you really want me to stop aspiring and become moribund in my jealousy?"
Is he serious? He glances to Emmi and smiles. "I know what you mean. Our
hold really only communicated by the sea. The occasional sweep rider of
course but mostly ships."
Emmi seems unsure of the extent of Dalanor's seriousness-- the wine's clouded
a bit of her usual perceptiveness when it comes to other people. "Well. Of
course not. Thank you, Dalanor." She takes in the conversation on
birthplaces. "I feel lucky I've never been isolated. Born and bred at Harper
Hall, you're kind of in the middle of everything."
Shirina nods. "That must be nice. I feel like there's just SOOO much to learn.
It's crazy being around somewhere like this with riders coming in and out
all the time and all these people who have been all over..." she sighs
getting a wispy look on her face.
Dalanor chuckles. "Just remember to breathe, Shirina. Otherwise you'll end up
gasping for air too late to realize you're suffocating under the thumb of
the archivists." He grins, then straightens. "To be fair, they are skilled
researchers integral to the hall. They just... well... make easy targets for
jokes." He frowns. "I really should diversify."
Emmi nods. "And be careful just who hears those jokes," she warns, mostly to
Shirina, but also as a cautionary word to Dalanor. "Our Apprentice Master
Gerand's an archivist. Don't enjoy that work much myself, though. Too dim in
those archives. I'm meticulous enough to be good at it, but my heart's in
voice and composition."
Shirina grins. "I never forget to breathe. That would be silly." she says to
Dalanor like he's gone daft. "I mean. Sometimes I talk until I'm out of
breath but I don't /forget/ to breathe." she rolls her eyes at him and turns
back to Emmi. "I want to learn a little of everything before I decide what I
want to do. It wouldn't make sense to decide now without having tried
everything first. I mean, what if I'm really good at something. I was
brought here because I tell stories a lot and Amran says I have a voice with
a lot of potential." she babbles. "But I don't even know what else I /could/
do, so I have to try everything first before I'll decide." she nods her head
at the decision.
Dalanor nods in agreement to both. "And well you will Shirina. That's what
they do with all the first year apprentices." To clarify the point, he looks
to Emmi. "Oh come on, Emmi. I haven't told a dirty joke in... wow... you
know I can't remember."
Emmi sips her wine quietly as the girl babbles on, then echoes Dalanor. "It's
true, you'll have a chance. Probably to try things you didn't even know
about at your hold." She gives Dalanor a snort. "You know, I can't either.
Which means it's been a while. I'm not one for dirty jokes." So the wine
hasn't loosened her up completely.
Shirina grins. "Well I'm glad to hear that. I'm just excited to get started,
but I guess there are a few days before that happens." she says, chewing her
lip for a moment. The conversation about dirty jokes apparently going over
her head, or she's just not paying much attention. Either way, she stands
there blithly not commenting on it.
Dalanor hefts the case he's been guarding. "Much as I would love to stay
about, I should be getting this back sooner than later. Congratulations,
Emmi." He bows to her, then bows to Shirina. "And congratulations to you as
well. Even if its a little premature yet." Rising, he smiles to both. "Good
night."
Emmi waves to Dalanor as he departs. "It's far past curfew," she realizes, and
then has another realization... "Which I don't have to worry about anymore."
Huh. "But no wonder I'm so tired. I'm afraid I should take my leave as well,
Shirina. Welcome to Harper Hall." And she heads off behind Dalanor.
Shirina waves to them both, yawning wide. She bounds after them, headed to
settle herself into the female dorms for her first night at the hall.
Where: Great Hall, Harper Hall
What: Emmi performs her Gather peice... and walks the tables.
Great Hall
The Great Hall more than lives up to its name, stretching away from you into
the distance. The enormous stage lies to the south, taking up an entire
quarter of the room's space. A densely woven, harper blue curtain
embellished with a random design of white harper badges conceals the bare
boards when not in use. An apron curves out around the stage, with shallow
flights of steps leading upwards at either end. Thick plank benches, some of
them padded with harper blue cushions, are stacked neatly out of the way
against the walls when not needed for a performance. The floor is bare,
polished to a faint gloss. Stored against the east wall are several casks of
wines and ales, used when the Hall opens its doors to all on gala occasions.
Carved into the west walls are several breathtakingly wide windows. When the
thick, hinged metal shutters are pulled back one can watch the happenings in
the courtyard. The north wall supports a huge tapestry, a Gather scene with
several Harpers entertaining a dancing throng.
The broad doors lead back into the Main Hall.
Noemie enters the Great Hall, once more gesturing about. "And this is the
Great Hall." Obviously. In one corner, a girl is sitting quietly tuning a
gitar, looking rather worried. Though her hair's raven black, the exact
opposite of Noemie's platinum blonde, their faces are so similar that it's
clear their related. Noemie spots her immediately, rushing over to greet
her. "Emmi!" she calls, and at the sound the dark haired girl looks up and
smiles.
Emmi stands, rushing forward to embrace her sister. "Noe! I'm so glad you
could come. Who's this?" she asks, looking towards the Istan visitor that's
come along with the greenrider.
Sephie looks over towards Emmi and she smiles, nodding her head. "Hello. I'm
Sephie. I'm the Hairstylist, well one of them at Ista." She says, holding
her hand out towards Emmi. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
Noemie grins. "She's good at it, too. Look!" And she swirls her head a bit,
showing off a new haircut. "I offered to bring her along in exchange. She's
never been between before!" The dark-haired girl nods a bit solemnly. "Glad
you could come," she says, distractedly scanning the room, trying to gauge
turnout.
Dalanor comes into the great hall cradling a tapered hard leather case as
though it were as precious as a dragon egg. He looks about then and spies a
few familiar faces so he heads on over.
Emmi notes the arrival of her fellow apprentice, eagerly calling him over.
"Good! You're here! Is that the viola? Have you tuned it already? Practiced
enough?" Her barrage of questions betrays her nervousness.
"Well, I'm just lucky." Sephie says before she looks at Emmi and smiles at
her. "YOu have a wonderful sister." She says, trying to catch up with the
conversation but she stops talking as Emmi notes another apprentice.
Dalanor waves Emmi away from hovering over the delicate package. "Yes yes or
so we'll find out soon enough. I've enough jitters just thinking about it
and you'll know its tuned or the Masterharper will have my hide." He grins.
"So who all do we have here?" He looks to Noemie then and grins. "Ahh. Ista
right? Noemie was it? Naijath's rider?"
Noemie nods. "Good memory, Apprentice," she says, smiling. "I don't want to
keep you two, though. It looks like you should be preparing. Sephie, let's
find some choice seats, shall we?" Emmi seems a bit relieved to not have to
entertain and prepare simultaneously, and turns to Dalanor. "Okay, then.
Let's double-check to make sure. Then give me an 'E'?"
"Good luck you two." Sephie says as she looks towards Noemie and nods.
"Alright, you lead. I'll follow." The young woman says as she moves to find
a nice place to sit. "It's starting to fill up. I'm anxious for your
sister."
Gerand strolls into the hall from the outside, the Apprentice Master moving
toward the front row and glancing around to get his bearings within the
crowd as he settles into a seat.
Rodric steps through the doors in quiet conference with a journeywoman,
nodding a few times before breaking away to join Gerand in the front row. He
smiles encouragingly Emmi's way as he passes and sits.
Dalanor blinks at Emmi. Eyes the case. Then mumbles something under his breath
before moving away from the throng and getting out the precious viola.
Placing it gingerly to his chin, he plucks an E twice before nodding and
fetching the bow from the case and offering Emmi a sustained note. A brow
lifts in query of her readiness.
Carianna smiles as she arrives, glancing about the hall with delight. Quietly
she heads over to a vacant seat and sinks into it seeming please to get off
her feet for a time.
Emmi looks about the Hall as it fills, humming the note along with Dalanor's
instrument and solidifying her opening note in her head. "Okay," she says.
"Remember, the opening verse is a capella. Then you'll join in immediately
at it's last line." If she sounds bossy, it's only because she's nervous.
"Are they all seated? Should I begin?"
Gerand glances up toward the stage with a nod of his head and an encouraging
smile before glancing about at a few stragglers making the way in. He
notices the Masterharper sitting down as well, offering a polite, silent
nod.
Dalanor nods patiently to Emmi, maybe its a forced patience. He's only been
practicing this piece for the last two weeks. Still, he takes a deep breath,
nods, and... waits.
Sephie looks over towards Noemie and whispers. "She looks really nervous. She
shouldn't be.. I'm sure that all of these people will love her immensely."
She offers in a quiet, soft voice.
Tavik wanders in from the main hall, glancing around, his expression
brightening as he finally finds the right place. "Aha!" he says, then claps
a hand over his mouth to shut himself up. Grinning, he makes his way over to
one side where he can watch unobtrusively.
Having shed and left her riding jacket behind, Zahava now wears her shawl
looped over her arms as she and Chihanne enter the hall together. "I think
we're nearly late," she murmurs to the greenrider, pointing towards a pair
of seats they can claim, heading that way.
Carianna's jade eyes sparkle as she listens to the voices around her and
watches the stage Harpers as they prepare. She folds her hands on her lap
and for the entertainment to begin with anticipation.
Rodric waits until the hall has filled at least partway, grinning over at
Gerand then he rises and walks up to the stage. "May I have your attention
please." He waits for some of the chatter to die down and then projects his
voice so he's heard at the back of the room. "First, thank you all for
coming to the Gather, the Hall is honored by your presence. Second, I'd like
to point out some refreshments laid out to the side of the room, you're
welcome to avail yourselves of food and drink after the performance.
Finally, in her debut Gather performance, I'd like to introduce Senior
Apprentice Emmi, who will be singing "Caria's Ballad" for us this evening,
accompanied by Apprentice Dalanor on the viola." He starts clapping as he
ducks off the stage and nods Emmi's way.
Sephie claps loudly for Emmi and nods at her as the man walks off of the
stage.. She doesn't want to be too boisterous, however so she simply beams
at her and looks to her sister. "I hope she does well."
"Well," Chihanne begins, her hands searching for pockets which don't exist in
her current outfit. "nearly isn't the same as certainly." She points out in
a quiet tone as her storm colored eyes scan the room at the other people who
are around looking for familiar faces even as she follows her sister's
gesture and heads towards the indicated seats.
Gerand gives some brief applause of his own, looking about and spotting a
familiar face here and there to which he offers polite nods before leaning
back and settling in to watch the performance.
Carianna claps lightly before settling in comfortably to watch the
performance.
Applauding loudly, Tavik grins over towards Emmi and gives her a thumbs-up,
then quiets down and waits for the performance to begin. Idly, he glances
around at the others gathered, eyes lingering here and there appraisingly.
Emmi gives a half-smile as she's introduced, then waits for the crowd to
settle before she speaks. Her voice, at first, is shaky, but as she
continues and adjusts to being in front of the crowd, it evens. "Good
evening," she says. "Thank you for coming. This is a piece written at the
beginning of the last Pass. Though it's a tragic ballad, it's main message
is one of hope." She takes a deep, harper-trained breath, and her voice
rings through the hall, clear and note-perfect.
"Gather 'round, gather near--
Sit, for now, and lend an ear.
Listen, Hold, and listen, Weyr."
The song begins with Emmi's voice alone, and only after the first verse does
the accompaniment begin.
Dalanor lifts the bow to string once the initial verse is complete, the 'a
capella' being joined by the attentive strokes of the string in a reply to
the request of Emmi's voice.
Zahava settles into the seat, quickly adding her applause to the others, then
resting her hands in her lap as the song begins, tilting her head to the
side slightly as though it will help her listen. When the accompaniment
begins, she smiles slightly.
Rodric regains his seat next to Gerand, and folds his arms across his chest,
head tilted upward a little, to listen to the piece. "Should be interesting
with the viola instead of a gitar," he murmurs to the Apprentice Master.
Chihanne flops down into her seat with a bit less grace than her sister.
Hearing the announcement, the younger blonde had joined in with the applause
only to allow it to fade as the singer catches her attention. Sitting
straight in her chair, she allows her hands to rest palm down against her
legs as her grey eyes linger on Emmi's face.
Gerand gives a slight nod of his head to the Masterharper at his observation,
leaning in and whispering back in a quiet voice. "I'd not heard it this way
before.." His hands are folded across his lap as he listens to the two on
stage, watching Dalanor's bow work.
Carianna's slippered foot moves to the beat of the musical accompaniment, her
smile broadening as she listens to the singers words.
Sephie's smile broadens even more proudly as she listens to Emmi's performance
and the excellent bow work from Dalanor. "This is really good." She tells
Noemie. "I've never been to a gather." A soft sigh comes to Sephie's lips.
"This is great."
As the viola joins Emmi's voice, the tale of the ballad begins. It is the
story of a beautiful holder's daughter who loves a stable boy-- but, as in
all ballads, he does not love her back. The tune is a little sad, though
lighthearted enough to reflect accurately the troubles of young love.
Finally, at last, the boy admits he's loved the girl the entire time, but
was so sure that she wouldn't return his love that he had never admitted it.
The tune becomes more upbeat, and by the tone of the song, their requited
love is merely the beginning of their story.
Noemie nods to Sephie, giving the younger girl a smile before she turns her
attention back to her sister.
"Me either," Rodric says back, sotto voce, "I ran it with her a few times on
gitar ..." he trails off to pay full attention, head tilted slightly to one
side.
Zahava glances over at Chihanne and gives her a wry smile, then refocuses her
attention on the singer.
Dalanor coaxes a lilting refrain from the strings. Once glad in its
brightness, then mournfully pulling upon the heartstrings. It is
exhilherating and frightening both, gliding across the register as one might
expect a ride adragonback to be. Eventually, the music soars as only love
must!
Carianna's eyes close allowing the melody and words of the song to wash over
her, imagining the story in her own mind. A contented sigh comes from her as
she listens.
Chihanne starts to lean forward, bending slightly at the waist as she props
herself up with her elbows on her knees. Hands clasped together she listens
intently to the music. Wide eyes absorb the lyrical sound as much as those
who are producing it.
The couple's life is happy, for a while. Then, one day, a dragon arrives on
Search. The tune reflects the arrival of the blue dragon, describing him
through the music as Emmi's words explain his coming.
"That day, another saw in my love all that I had seen.
The blue dragon looked at him, his eyes a whirling green
"You're for the weyr!" His rider gaily called.
"I must go," my beloved said,
And, too soon, away he'd fled,
A-dragonback, blinking away *between*."
The happiness of the song again turns mournful, as the girl laments the
departure of her love. Emmi sings from the perspective of the holder girl,
but it's easy to forget she's merely performing, so far does she slip into
her part.
Sephie's eyes are locked on the two producing the beautiful music and she
gives a little sigh at the story. Her eyes tear up a little at the story,
being pulled in by the performance.
Zahava's cheek ripples slightly as the song goes on, and she sits back in her
seat, settling in her seat, lips pressed together.
Even the Masterharper is starting to blink a little, eyes suspiciously bright
as the performance goes on.
Low tones resonate from the viola as Dalanor coaxes a draconic presence from
the instrument, bright words offered by the rider interspersed within. The
brightness ends with mournful resignation and the viola silences with a
suddenness.
Carianna wipes at the moisture that dampens her cheek, lost in the performance
playing out on the stage.
Chihanne wrinkles her nose, eyes shifting over towards Zahava. The action is
partially masked by the fall of hair that hangs loosely about her face.
Straightening, she tries to mask the somewhat figety motion as she continues
to steal glances at her sister from the corners of her eye.
When the hatching day comes, Caria, the holder's daughter, comes to the Weyr.
She watches as her lover takes to the sands, already feeling as if he's been
lost to her forever. And sure enough, his lifemate is upon those sands--
"The beauty of the tiny bronze was clear--
But then I heard my father whisper in my ear.
"He won't come back to you. He's bound now to the weyr."
I tried to watch him with the same joy
That shone from dragon and from boy."
The song is truly mournful now, the poor girl's heart broken:
"I cried so long they sought the healer,
Who simply said there was no cure."
But the tune seems expectant at the same time it is mournful, and something
else is sure to happen-- the story is not over.
Gerand has his eyes closed, so any signs of emotion are more easily masked by
the Apprentice Master as he listens carefully to the strains of the viola
and the pitch of Emmi's vocals.
Sephie's fingers reach up to wipe away tears that are openly flowing as she
looks from the performers towards Noemie who nods at her. She gives the
rider a smile before she turns back to Emmi and Dalanor. She gives them both
a big smile.
Now that she's settled back, Zahava's expression remains impassive as she
listens.
Silence is broken with a soft vibrato from the viola, a low hum which grows in
intensity as the moment of hatching nears. A note, plucked amidst the hum,
strikes the pulse of breaking heart until the hum ceases with one last
pluck. But has it? Softly now, almost unheard, a single note is sustained
with a slow arc of the bow across the strings, Dalanor's attention firmly
upon the instrument he plays.
Carianna continues to listen, her petite hand lifting from time to time to
brush against her cheeks again. Spellbound her attention doesn't leave the
stage area.
Chihanne looks thoughtful as she listens, remaining quiet and making an effort
not to fidget.
Finally, one day, Caria's lover returns to the hold, now a fully-fledged
bronzerider. The music rises to portray a tense reunion between the two,
Emmi's face reflecting the confusion and complexity of the encounter, as she
sings:
"We stumbled, trying to find the words
We thought would tumble from our mouths.
He explained to me how loving a dragon was.
I tried and tried my best to understand,
But with a voice absent from your mind, you never fully can.
I felt an ache in places his dragon must have filled."
But, after a time, the two realize that, though they've both changed, the
parts of each other they loved are still intact, and Caria returns with the
bronzerider to the Weyr. The tension of the song breaks into joy, though a
soft, foreboding strain remains in the music, enough to send shivers up
one's spine, inexplicably, despite the happiness of the tune.
Sephie's mouth opens to cheer but she manages to restrain herself and she sits
there, trying to keep from crying more than she already has. She looks at
Noemie for the moment, but she's engrossed in the story so she turns her
attention back to the music and story.
The viola burst forth into energy as the dragon appears in the song, tension
resonating in its urgency and confusion of words. Slowly, the music softens
but there is a minor chord sowing dischord into the harmony. Even as the joy
grows, so does the dissonance seek to raise the hairs.
Carianna's hands lower to hug her chest when the story twists, but when the
musical stains change her jade eyes begin to round, her head slowly
beginning to shake with worry. Still she listens.
Even though Rodric /knows/ the song, he's leaning forward in his seat a
little, head bowed now as he listens, the dissonance in the viola making him
fidget a little.
Zahava's nose wrinkles slightly, but otherwise, there is no overt reaction to
the music or lyrics as she listens.
It is after Caria moves to the Weyr, becoming the bronzerider's weyrmate, that
a Pass begins once more, and Thread begins to fall on Pern. Her love and
his bronze dragon fight bravely, and Emmi sings of their valour, and that of
the other dragons, with her eyes shining. But it is then that the final
movement of the song begins, and the melody turns with finality to sorrow
once more. Thread falls awry, consuming the bronze dragon's wing, pulling
dragon and rider *between*.
"The kreen of dragons peirces you so deep,
You can only stand, you cannot begin to weep
Until the echoes of the sounds leave your skin.
Anguish is the closest word that we can find
To describe the emotion felt by Dragonkind,
Their understanding of loss running deeper than our own."
Caria's pain might as well been Emmi's own, as her face reflects the words she
sings, so consumed that she's nearly forgotten she sings before an audience.
Gerand can't help but let a visible wince show on his features as his eyes do
finally open, listening to the tune with a furrowed brow and a more easily
seen attempt to try and focus on the playing of the viola rather than the
words.
Sephie almost manages to catch a gasp and then places both of her hands over
her mouth as she hears the fate of the couple. She looks to Noemie, tears
welling quickly up in her eyes as she turns back to the pair singing and
playing. She is trying to control her emotions but she is so caught up that
she finally hides her face with her hair, rubbing her eyes furiously
Zahava's lips press together as her cheeks lose a little of their color, and
the woman shifts in her seat slightly, glancing towards the door.
Chihanne's pensive expression twists as her lips tug downwards, her hands
tugging absentmindedly at the hem of her tunic before she sends a glance
towards her sister once more. Her gaze then falls downward, intent on the
floor. She misses the look Zahava sends towards the door, though a slightly
impulsive urge causes her to reach out in search of Zahava's hand.
Sustaining the dischord as but a minor strain, the note is all but forgotten
in the fury and flurry of notes which invoke valour and threadfall. The
intensity builds until finally a single keening note reaches to the back of
the wall and beyond. It is a single note, sustained and refusing to be
ignored that finally fades within its own echoes. The viola begins anew with
smooth, tearful notes, streaming down the bow even as Dalanor himself fights
back the tears.
Carianna openly weeps, her thoughts going to her own Weyrmate. Thankfully an
Igen Rider to her left offers her a handkerchief which she uses to try and
dry her eyes.
Rodric's hands rub past each other, one palm then the other, eyes downturned,
as the music builds to that pitch.
At last the ballad comes to a close. The song slows, melodic and sad, Emmi
singing Caria's final words.
"My story is one of many that the Harpers have to tell;
Many others could suit a ballad just as well.
There are happier stories not sung in a minor key.
But, lest you leave me saddened, walk away from here
With hope in Hall and Hold, with hope in Dragonweyr,
For it is this, /hope/, that we need, not fear.
"For as long as we have faith in dragons that fly above,
The last of us to lose will not be the last to love."
The last words echo through the hall, Emmi's voice dying out softly as the
last note is sung, and at the very end she stays, unmoving, feeling the
final vibrations of the viola die as well.
Sephie's furiously biting on her bottom lip to keep from bawling out again
before she stands up at the end of the song and begins to applaud loudly.
She pauses in her applause to wipe a tear or two away from her features
before she begins again.
Dalanor brings the bow to a stop but allows the strings to resonate until they
spend themselves. He pauses for a count of five before removing the viola
from his chin and straightening to face the crowd behind and to Emmi's
right.
Shirina slips into the hall, just in time to hear the music fading off. She
hovers in the back, just listening and watching.
Noemie jumps to her feet beside Sephie, applauding loudly for her sister,
beaming. "She did well, didn't she?" she says, turning to the girl as she
claps. "Good piece to have chosen, too."
It takes a few moment before Carianna is able to join the wave of rising
patrons, her clapping mixed with an occasional need to dab at her cheeks
with the handkerchief.
Myglin had snuck in late, just in time to hear the final, tragic section of
the piece. He is left trembling, stalwart Smithcrafter though he is, washed
over with the emotion of the piece. He takes a deep breath, turns and slinks
out of the hall.
Gerand remains seated as the back of one hand brushes across his forehead and
eyes, grinning as he then moves to begin applauding for both Apprentices on
stage. "Excellent, well done, both of you!" he calls over as the final
strains from Dalanor's viola playing cease.
For less than a moment, Emmi stands dumbly as the crowd breaks into applause.
Then she's brought back to reality by the sound, snapped out of the reverie
of her performance. She turns to Dalanor. "So. They liked it?" she
half-whispers, loud enough to be heard over the noise.
Tavik applauds quietly, smiling. He gives both performers a thumbs up, then
applauds again. Straightening from where he'd been leaning against the back
of the hall, he stretches a bit, cracking his back.
Zahava gives Chihanne's hand quick squeeze and then withdraws to clap as
others begin to do so. She leans over to murmur to the greenrider quietly.
"Shall we slip out before the crowd? I wouldn't mind a bit of dancing to
shake that off," she comments. "Something actually... happy, perhaps,
anyway..."
Dalanor glances to Emmi, smiling, and nodding for her to look back to the
crowd. Momentarily forgetting just how precious the instrument is that he
holds, he gestures with both hands full for her to take a bow .
Sephie nods to Noemie as she reaches up and wipes the tears away from her face
as she speaks to the rider next to her. "I'm a mess, aren't I?" She wonders
before looking back to the group and applauding loudly again. "Woohoo!" She
says, clapping again.
The Masterharper also takes a moment, then looks up beaming at both Senior
Apprentices and he rises to join his applause to everyone else's. "Bravo!
Bravo!" he calls out, grinning from ear to ear.
Emmi is cued, thankfully, by Dalanor, and takes a few steps forward to bow. As
she does, she looks through the audience, trying to spot familiar faces in
the crowd. She catches the Masterharper's grin, then the smiles on her
parent's faces and those of her sisters, and a smile-- a real one-- breaks
on her face. She bows again, for good measure.
Chihanne nearly forgets to applaud, being a touch preoccupied. She does join
in hastily, though, when she sees the others around her doing that. Looking
up, her chin dips quickly in a nod. "Let's." She murmurs in quiet agreement;
rising to her feet to make a quiet exit from the hall.
Waiting for the applause to die down just a little, Rodric returns to the
stage before Emmi has a chance to leave it and stands at the edge clapping
still, until the room quiets further. "Well done! Well done!" he calls out
loudly enough to be heard at least in the first few rows. "And if I may beg
your attention once more please ..."
Noemie begins to laugh, tears still wet on her face from the performance. "A
bit, yes," she says honestly to Sephie, then turns her attention as the
Masterharper takes the stage, curious at what he has to say.
Gerand leans forward in his seat, resting his elbows against his knees as the
Masterharper calls for the room's attention. An eyebrow rises, and he looks
on curiously with his gaze flickering about the room curiously.
Dalanor looks askance of the Masterharper with a quirious brow but he stays
silent and steps to one side so that Rodric can be the focus of attention.
Thinking of the viola then, he moves to put it away.
Sephie finishes her applauding when the masterharper speaks and gives a bit of
an embarassed giggle to Noemie. "Hush, it's not my fault." She says, beaming
at Emmi.
Emmi, too, turns her attention to the Masterharper, giving Dalanor a glance as
he puts away the valuable instrument.
Carianna returns to her seat, offering Handkerchief back to the Igen Rider,
jade eyes turning back to the stage.
Shirina takes a seat in the back of the hall, wondering if maybe she might get
to hear the masterharper perform, or perhaps she's already missed that.
Either way, she watches the stage.
Rodric clears his throat as the crowd hushes a little. "I'm sure that after
hearing a performance such as that, that I don't need to elaborate much on
Emmi's abilities as a Harper, they've been fully demonstrated this evening.
With that in mind, after due consideration and consultation with the
Apprentice Master," he nods to Gerand, and the other Masters at the Hall,
that we have determined to raise Emmi to the rank of Journeywoman.
Traditionally, we would ask you to walk the tables, Emmi, but I hope that a
walk around the Great Hall will suffice?" The Master's eyes twinkle as he
speaks, drawing out the Senior Apprentice's new knot out of his pocket.
Sephie blinks a few times and looks to Noemie, tugging on her arm a bit. "Hey!
Hey! She just got Journeyman, so now she can get posted!" She says, turning
her attention to Emmi to watch her walk along the great hall.
Emmi is literally speechless for a moment-- a hard thing for a Harper to
accomplish. Finally, she finds words. "Why-- of course. I--- Thank you,
Masterharper," is what finally emerges, her eyes widening at the sight of
her new knot.
Carianna cheers loudly, her hands beating a steady beat on her lap, slippered
feet beating out a matching rhymed beat on the floor.
Gerand has a somewhat sly looking grin beginning to form on his face as Rodric
begins to speak, his eyes shifting over and watching Emmi's response as the
Masterharper continues speaking. When Emmi finally realizes just what's
going on, the Apprentice Master gives a warm grin in her direction - his own
workload having decreased ever so slightly at that moment.
Tavik sticks his pinkies into his mouth and lets out a whistle, then laughs
and cheers heartily, clapping his hands. "Well done, Emmi!" he calls, giving
her another thumbs-up.
Shirina perks up. Her first day there and she gets to see someone walk the
tables, or so to speak. She lets out a loud cheer for the apprentice she
hasn't met.
During the hubbub, Rodric ceremoniously removes Emmi's Apprentice knot and
replaces it with the shiny new Journeyman one, and offers her the old one to
keep if she so chooses, then holds out a hand, to help her down off the
stage and take that walk.
Dalanor glances up from putting away the viola and almost laughs. Its not a
harsh laugh but one of honest surprise and joy. He stops himself though and
latches the case before straightening and offering his own applause to the
event.
Emmi accepts her old knot as a memento, slipping it away into a pouch at her
waist. Then she accepts Rodric's hand, slipping off the stage to begin her
ceremonial walk-- tables or Great Hall, it doesn't seem to matter. She's
beaming-- looking a bit as if someone should pinch her, to assure her it's
actually happening.
Myglin has snuck back in at the sound of the Masterharper's voice, and a broad
grin breaks out across his face. "Walk, Emmi, walk," he calls in the
traditional chant for a newly-promoted journeyman. The craft doesn't matter,
only the act of promotion.
Sephie beams at Emmi, giggling at that before she looks back to Noemie. "I'm
really proud for her!" She says, looking over to Emmi and watches her walk.
More and more voices join in on that traditional chant: Walk! Walk! Walk Emmi,
Walk! as Rodric leads the newly made Journeywoman around the Hall.
Gerand starts clapping his hands in time with the chanting, standing up at
last and adding his voice to that of the rest, "Walk, walk, walk!" along
with a pause in his clapping rythm to gesture a circle around the room to
the new Journeywoman.
Shirina gets into the festivities of the event and joins in the chanting.
A twinge of jealousy perhaps? Dalanor watches the walking Emmi with envy for a
moment before he too picks up the rythmic clapping. "Walk, walk, walk,
walk!" Yeah... he's still an apprentice. Ahh well. His time will come.
Emmi looks from face to face as the chant goes up around the Hall, walking
alongside the Masterharper. She catches the faces of her father and mother
and her youngest sister as she passes them, and they let up a cheer. Then
Noemie-- what luck that her sister's here for this. Or was it planned that
way? It all seems a bit like a dream, and Emmi's eyes shine with joy.
Carianna's voice joins the chanting and in true baker style her slippered feet
keep beat with each word. "Walk! Walk!"
Sephie doesn't know how to do it correctly so she simply cheers and waves at
Emmi, almost woohooing at her again. She of course refrains from saying
anything as she's not in a craft.
Noemie's face nearly matches her sisters. To Sephie, she says, "You're proud
for her? I'm-- well. Proud's an understatement." Then she joins in the chant
once more-- "Walk! Walk! Walk, Emmi, Walk!"
All the way around the Hall, they go, Apprentices and Journeymen and some
Masters all joining in and finally, Rodric stops back near Emmi's family and
steps back. "Refreshments are over on the tables, or the Gather Grounds are
still open until everyone falls down with fatigue!" he calls out and then
fades away into the background.
Emmi quickly falls into tight embraces from her mother and her youngest
sister, and finally Noemie, once she's made her way over to the group. Her
father gives her a gruff, "Congratulations," and though his expression is
stiff there's a great deal of pride in it for his eldest daughter. Together,
as a family, they make their way over to the refreshments.
Gerand makes his way gradually through the lingering crowd toward the
refreshments, merely grinning a little bit to himself as he watches Emmi's
response to the whole scene. Catching the sight of Emmi and her father, the
younger Master grins at the Instrument Master's reaction to her promotion.
He reaches down for a glass and some wine after a few moments.
Carianna stands giving the hall a quick once over the heads off knowing she
still has duties back home to preform before retiring for the night.
Carianna pushes open the great wooden doors and floods the room with the
sounds of the hall before she passes through and the doors swing shut once
more.
Shirina shifts, feeling slightly out of place during the current event, but
she's on her feet at the comment about refreshments. She makes her way over
to the table, hoping perhaps to catch the eye of Dalanor, the only person in
the room she happens to recognize at the moment.
Dalanor is just departing the stage, moving along the fringe of the world on
his way back towards the exit. He espies Shirina and gives her a little
wave.
Emmi's family chatters among themselves, Emmi and Noemie explaining more in
depth to Sephie what walking the tables signifies, as the Istan girl sticks
close to her rider friend. As they speak, Emmi pours herself a glass of
wine, determined to celebrate properly. As she begins to take a sip, she
notices Gerand in the crowd. "Oh-- I simply must thank him," She says to her
family, excusing herself and making her way over to the Apprentice Master.
Shirina perks up at the wave from Dalanor. She grabs a snack from the table
and heads over to him. "I only caught the end of your performance but that
was really good! I don't think I could ever do something like that. Will I
learn do you think?" she asks, looking anxiously at the stage, not
particularly noticing if Dalanor is listening to her or not.
Gerand watches the nearby apprentices as he stands by the table full of
snacks, seeming pleased as Shirina and Dalanor strike up a conversation.
After a few moments, he spots Emmi coming closer and offers her a warm grin,
"Starting to feel it yet?"
Dalanor pauses in his slinking to converse, a laugh escaping him finally. "Of
course. If you mean to learn. You'll have plenty of time for that, never
fear." He looks thoughtfully at the case. "I'll admit I'm better at this
than I am singing. I've a fair voice but not the range of a dedicated
singer." He doesn't seem that put out by it.
Emmi shakes her head. "No. Not really," she admits. "It's all just a dream for
right now. I always feel a little like I'm floating after a performance..."
She struggles to explain the exact feeling. "And so now-- well. In any case.
Thank you, Master Gerand. For deeming me worthy of this knot, as well as for
all the instruction you've given me."
Shirina grins at Dalanor. "I've never had an instrument to try to play. Will
that be something I get to do here or will they make me stick just to what
Amran said he was bringing me here for? Because I want to learn it all,
well, if they let me of course, because I still need to actually be
accepted. Do you know when that will happen?" she asks him. She's got
someone to talk to, she's not likely letting him go far just yet.
Myglin watches all of this with a faintly envious smile. Oh well, Smithcraft
does have the reputation of having the lengthiest apprenticeship of all the
Crafts -- his time will come. But right now duty fights curiosity -- should
I stay or should I go? -- and keeps him rivited to his spot at the back of
the Hall.
Gerand listens to Emmi with a grin, "I hadn't expected as much, it may be a
day or two. But it will come." he offers warmly, "Bah, I can't take the
credit for that much, Emmi. It's natural talent that got you where you are."
he flashes her a wink.
Dalanor musses his face into a disapproving frown of disbelief. "Feh. Of
course not. You'll learn instruments as well as voice. Just because you want
to focus in voice doesn't mean the Hall doesn't want you well rounded.
Myself, I'm studying diplomacy with the Master but I can still sing and
play. Even the archivists can keep a beat..." Here he grows quiet to a
whisper. "Most of them anyway." He winks.
Emmi gives that expression that signifies Emmi's version of a laugh. "Natural
talent? Then what were these last six-- nearly seven-- Turns for?" She sips
her wine contemplatively for a moment. "A day or two, I'm sure. Now what's
to happen to me-- am I to be posted? Or am I supposed to worry about that
when I've finished celebrating?"
Shirina giggles. "Well I don't know that I want to focus on singing, because I
love to tell stories too. Especially to groups of people. Though no one at
home will really listen to me anymore. I mean, they /listen/ but they get
tired of me. My ma says I'm a lot to handle but I don't think so. I'm just
curious about everything and I like to know things. She says I ask too many
questions too. Do you think I ask too many questions?" she wonders to the
older apprentice. She glances over at Emmi. "It's awfully exciting to see
something like that. How long have you been here, are you ready to be a
journeyman too or is that still a ways off for you?" she blathers at him.
Gerand can't help but laugh in reply to Emmi's question, tipping his head to
her and offering with a sly grin. "Polish. Just like any gem, you need to
polish it to make it truly shine." he explains, "As far as posting, don't
worry about it just yet. Enjoy the night." he reaches over and offers her a
glass of the same wine he'd just picked up.
Dalanor turns his attention to Gerand thoughtfully. "Soon? Maybe. Hard to say.
I try not to think about it." But he does if the length of time his eyes
linger on Emmi are any guess. "Have you considered composition?" He
inquires, returning his attention to Shirina. "If you like to sing and like
to write, it seems the right fit to me."
Emmi accepts the glass, taking a sip. "That I will," she reassures him.
"Though I'm excited for all of that, too. I can worry about it tomorrow. Or
the day after that." The wine and the celebration have begun to go to her
head, and she smiles at the Apprentice Master. "With all that, I didn't get
to ask. What did you think of my performance?"
Shirina falls silent for a moment as she watches Dalanor's reaction to her
question. "Oh..." she says for once not sure what to say, but only for a
moment. "Well you were really wonderful up there, I'm sure there's not much
more time for you to have left." she says cheerfully. "You're friends with
her, right? Well then go be happy for her!" she grins, reaching to give the
man a push towards Emmi.
Emmi has just turned to go find Dalanor amidst the crowd, and meets him
halfway, thanks to Shirina's push. "Dalanor!" She calls brightly. "Thank you
once again for accompanying me, and on short notice. It was wonderful, don't
you think?" The wine has clearly made her a bit more cheerful, far less
serious, than usual.
Dalanor is pushed? Looking over his shoulder at Shirina, he laughs confusedly.
"Hey, woah. I hardly know her!" But then she did just get her rank and its
only right. He relents and turns to face. Emmi. Right there in front of him.
He adjusts the collar on his tunic, grinning. "You're quite welcome. I..
well.. I didn't know quite /what/ to expect. I'd been spending so much time
getting the bridging just right with my fingers that I hadn't put it all
together in my head. That was quite a moving piece. Where ever did you find
it?"
Shirina grins as Emmi and Dalanor chat about their performance, hovering
slightly behind the young man and watching the newly knotted Journeyman with
a look of awe. For once, she says nothing, letting the two of them talk.
"Where did I find it? Oh-- in the archives, some place." Emmi stammers a bit.
"Yes, of course. Did some digging to find just the right piece. And it was,
wasn't it?" She takes a steadying sip of her wine. As she does, Shirina is
noticed behind Dalanor. "And oh, who's this?"
Dalanor regards Emmi thoughtfully a moment before the distraction of the query
makes him glance to Shirina. "Ahh! This is Miss Shirina. She desires to be
an apprentice. Just moved in today in fact which means its likely a done
thing. Just a matter of placements in classes really. Master Gerand will see
to that soon enough I'm sure." He smiles reassuringly to Shirina.
Emmi gives her odd little half-smile-- what on someone else would be a wide
beam, what might be a little unnerving to someone who doesn't know the new
Journeyman. "Well, then. Welcome! How fitting. Master Gerand loses one
apprentice and gains another in the same day. Where are you from, Shirina?"
She's far more verbose and friendly than usual-- Shirina's met her on a good
day.
Shirina perks up, about to introduce herself when Dalanor does the honors.
"Thanks." she says to him softly before turning back to Emmi. "Journeyman
Amran let me ride with him. He came in for the gather, I'm sure he's
performed today." she grins. "He's been ever so nice. Actually all the folks
here have been ever so nice." she grins at Dalanor, making sure he knows
he's once such nice person. She glances back to Emmi. "A cothold a bit north
of Benden Hold." she answers with a grin.
Dalanor steps back from the two women and their chattings to watch. He's
already had plenty of time to chat with Shirina and so he nods encouragingly
to her as the journeywoman begins her interrogation.
Emmi nods. "Benden Hold. Never been there," she muses. "Of course. I've never
been much of anywhere. Just to Ista Weyr. Guess that's going to change now,
though." She looks over at Dalanor, a bit apologetically, hoping things
aren't awkward between them. "Your day is coming soon, I'm sure. Anyway, I
/did/ apprentice a bit before you."
Shirina grins. "I've actually only been there once myself. And that was on my
way here. I've never really been much of anywhere. Our cothold was fairly
self sufficient, and we were on trade routes so anything we needed we got as
the trains came through." she explains, talking rather quickly. She grins at
Dalanor, seeming to claim him as her first, and currently only, friend at
the hall.
Dalanor gives a casual shrug. "Not a worry. Really. Just be happy alright? If
you're happy, I'll be happy. Simple. After all, you are what we aspired to.
Do you really want me to stop aspiring and become moribund in my jealousy?"
Is he serious? He glances to Emmi and smiles. "I know what you mean. Our
hold really only communicated by the sea. The occasional sweep rider of
course but mostly ships."
Emmi seems unsure of the extent of Dalanor's seriousness-- the wine's clouded
a bit of her usual perceptiveness when it comes to other people. "Well. Of
course not. Thank you, Dalanor." She takes in the conversation on
birthplaces. "I feel lucky I've never been isolated. Born and bred at Harper
Hall, you're kind of in the middle of everything."
Shirina nods. "That must be nice. I feel like there's just SOOO much to learn.
It's crazy being around somewhere like this with riders coming in and out
all the time and all these people who have been all over..." she sighs
getting a wispy look on her face.
Dalanor chuckles. "Just remember to breathe, Shirina. Otherwise you'll end up
gasping for air too late to realize you're suffocating under the thumb of
the archivists." He grins, then straightens. "To be fair, they are skilled
researchers integral to the hall. They just... well... make easy targets for
jokes." He frowns. "I really should diversify."
Emmi nods. "And be careful just who hears those jokes," she warns, mostly to
Shirina, but also as a cautionary word to Dalanor. "Our Apprentice Master
Gerand's an archivist. Don't enjoy that work much myself, though. Too dim in
those archives. I'm meticulous enough to be good at it, but my heart's in
voice and composition."
Shirina grins. "I never forget to breathe. That would be silly." she says to
Dalanor like he's gone daft. "I mean. Sometimes I talk until I'm out of
breath but I don't /forget/ to breathe." she rolls her eyes at him and turns
back to Emmi. "I want to learn a little of everything before I decide what I
want to do. It wouldn't make sense to decide now without having tried
everything first. I mean, what if I'm really good at something. I was
brought here because I tell stories a lot and Amran says I have a voice with
a lot of potential." she babbles. "But I don't even know what else I /could/
do, so I have to try everything first before I'll decide." she nods her head
at the decision.
Dalanor nods in agreement to both. "And well you will Shirina. That's what
they do with all the first year apprentices." To clarify the point, he looks
to Emmi. "Oh come on, Emmi. I haven't told a dirty joke in... wow... you
know I can't remember."
Emmi sips her wine quietly as the girl babbles on, then echoes Dalanor. "It's
true, you'll have a chance. Probably to try things you didn't even know
about at your hold." She gives Dalanor a snort. "You know, I can't either.
Which means it's been a while. I'm not one for dirty jokes." So the wine
hasn't loosened her up completely.
Shirina grins. "Well I'm glad to hear that. I'm just excited to get started,
but I guess there are a few days before that happens." she says, chewing her
lip for a moment. The conversation about dirty jokes apparently going over
her head, or she's just not paying much attention. Either way, she stands
there blithly not commenting on it.
Dalanor hefts the case he's been guarding. "Much as I would love to stay
about, I should be getting this back sooner than later. Congratulations,
Emmi." He bows to her, then bows to Shirina. "And congratulations to you as
well. Even if its a little premature yet." Rising, he smiles to both. "Good
night."
Emmi waves to Dalanor as he departs. "It's far past curfew," she realizes, and
then has another realization... "Which I don't have to worry about anymore."
Huh. "But no wonder I'm so tired. I'm afraid I should take my leave as well,
Shirina. Welcome to Harper Hall." And she heads off behind Dalanor.
Shirina waves to them both, yawning wide. She bounds after them, headed to
settle herself into the female dorms for her first night at the hall.