(no subject)
Who: Aida, Tavaly, Esmene, Essdara
Where: Living Caverns, HRW
When: After midnight, day 17 month 1 turn 2
Comment: Insomnia abounds. One friend is comforted, another friend is teased, and a third is lost.
Apparently, Dara isn't the only insomniac in the Weyr. Aida has started to prove similar, it seems; the young woman has claimed a chair and drug it fairly close to one of the fires along the west wall. She's curled up in it and is staring at the flames at the current moment, her jacket hanging over the back of said chair in a 'drying out' sort of position, her boots off and sitting beneath it. She is at least behaving herself, in that her right ankle is lifted mostly above the rest of her body by virtue of how she's twisted about and sitting. Yes, comfortable. There is fire staring. It's *so* very interesting. It really, really is.
Speak the devil's name and she shall appear. She comes out from the lower caverns, stretching and yawning while she does so. She looks around the desolate caverns, nearly empty at this hour, and spots Aida. A slight smile, and the girl is off towards her friend. As she comes up on her, she speaks in a quiet voice. "You're easier to find than I expected. I got lonely and looked for you, and you weren't there." She makes a face, "Can't sleep either, then, I take it?"
Tavaly arrives through the long tunnel that comes from the lower caverns.
"Sleep?" Aida asks, uncurling a little bit from her chair in front of the fire that she's sitting in. She doesn't uncurl all the way, leaving her bare foot up on the arm and lifted -- but still, she does straighten enough to look up and over towards Dara instead of at the fire. There's a smile flashed, and she lifts one hand to give a little wiggle of her fingers. "No, I can't'," she confirms. "It...I just couldn't get to sleep. Unfortunately. But yes, I am usually remarkably easy to find. It's rare enough that I'm not predictable, especially when I'm supposed to be sleeping. I would ask what you're doing up, but...even I know that's a silly question."
It's not a question of why she's up, either. Everyone, by now, knows of the insomnia the greenriding weyrling suffers. However, it's the puffy eyes and runny nose and the just-got-done crying look that might take some explaining. Silent as death, the girl steals up from the lower caverns, cornering the table upon which sits the klah with a distracted urgency. Don't mind her.
Essdara pulls a chair over next to Aida, giving her a small smirk. "Yeah, I know, I never sleep well. S'why I was looking for you. I've found you to be one of the more reliable things for going to sleep. It's weird, until recently, I'd never known how nice it was to share a cot with nothing happening. Now, I find myself craving exactly that. I think you are a bad influence on me." She hasn't noticed her other friend, clearly.
"Good influence," Aida promptly declares, though her voice touches a bit absent as those blue eyes do catch sight of Tavaly. The girl's condition is taken in in a heartbeat, and she's sitting up the rest of the way and reaching out with her left foot to poke at Dara's arm, then gesture with it towards the table with the klah, or more specifically the greenrider at it. Rather than offering any words on the topic, she lifts a hand and points to her own eyes, making sure that Dara's attention is drawn there first.
Pour. Pour. Spill. Ow, hurty burning feeling in the hand. With a soft hiss, the greenrider shakes hot klah droplets from her hand, sipping at the mug as quietly as possible. There are others here, and the last thing she wants to do is interrupt. And/or betray herself. After all. Tavvy crying? Not the sort of thing she needs spread around. Especially when she has a reputation for WINNING barfights. So, face to the wall, she merely stands there, mug in hands. Despite herself, an audible sniff rings out through the near-abandoned cavern.
Essdara doesn't debate good or bad, instead following Aida's gaze to Tavaly, and of course to the puffy eyes and tear-trails. She frowns slightly and looks concerned. She murmers softly to Aida, "I'll be right back, dearheart." She stands, and moves over towards the greenrider. Her greeting to her is tentative and almost shy. "Tava? You ok?"
Oh geez. Aida cringes in sympathy, watching Tavaly as Dara approaches the other woman. It's not so much sympathy for whatever is upsetting the girl as it is for being upset, trying to hide it, and getting caught, but hey. The girl shakes her head lightly and sinks down in her chair again, turning her eyes back to the fire. Not watching. Really. Please ignore that tilt of her head that betrays she's listening that way fairly intently.
"I.. uh.." Stammer. "Soot. In my eyes. From.. firestone practice." That happened over 12 hours ago. SHUT UP. So she's bad at lying. Whatev. "Got.. crap." She sips her klah, shoulders sagging. "Just.. a lot of things going on. It's better. Now. ..though." She says, not looking at Dara, save for small glances at the girl's shoes. "You mad at me, too? Like ev'ryone else?"
Essdara blinks, and slips an arm around Tavaly's waist, and attempting to guide her back to where she was sitting with Aida. "C'mon, sit with us. And why on Pern would I be mad at you? I was going to ask if /you/ were mad at /me/." She makes a face. "I was a right ass the other night."
Oh, incoming. Aida uncurls entirely and sits up, giving a little roll of her shoulders as bare feet (her boots are under her chair) hit the stone of the floor. The smile she offers over towards the pair is warm and friendly, apparently oblivious to the signs of recent tears.
She kind of.. cackles at that. "If you're an ass, Dara, then I'm whatever comes outta ya. I taunted K'sar to his feet, nearly choked Kierom and.." She pauses, glancing at Aida. "Just about popped you in the jaw." She says, wiping her nose on the back of a sleeve as she continues to look at Ai. "Wanted t'say 'm sorry 'bout that. Kinda lost my head for a while. All kinda.. built its way up. Friends?" She offers a not-snot-wipey hand to the healer-gal, as Dara successfully leads her to the corner. "Yer cute when you're not all scowly and bossy." Tav says, putting on her best smile for Aida.
Essdara gives Aida a mock surprised look around Tavaly. "You're not bossy? Must be cause you haven't said anything..." She settles Tavaly into what was her chair, and pulls yet another over. She settles in it, and puts an arm around Tava. "Aids is a very good person, and very dear to me. As are you, Tava. As for K'sar and Kierom... I hope it wasn't me that caused you to yell at them? I didn't mean to cause any trouble, I really didn't."
Sliding to her feet when the hand is offered to her, Aida clasps the greenrider's hand and gives a squeeze and a solid shake to go with it. "There's absolutely no need to apologize," she states firmly. "It happens, and even if you had hit me, I'd have found a way to forgive you -- and it would not have been difficult. Friends." Beat. "Believe me, I did not /want/ to try and stop you. So...I may be a bit more understanding than I otherwise might be." That's followed by a wink. And then she rolls her eyes at Dara. "Don't listen to her. I think we've already established that I'm at least a horrible influence. As far as the bossy, well. Guilty."
"What, I need a reason to pop someone in the head? Nah. Wasn' you. This happened.. after. That. I escaped to my weyr after that morning. Came down when Dananth told Immath that Kierom'd been in a fight." She slumps slightly. "Got mad. Roughed 'im up. Stuff." She looks at Aida with a smile and nods her head. "It's settled. We'll all be wenches."
Essdara grins softly. "I think I'm more the bad influence on her, truth be told." She leans against Tavaly. "So is there a reason for all your tension and frustration, dearheart, or is it just an overload with all that's gone on this turn so far? I know I'm at wits end to cope with it, and I'm barely involved."
There's a nod of agreement to the 'it's settled', and Aida shifts back and flops down into her chair again, promptly curling back up. She sends a glance over in the direction of the tunnel to the bowl, then shakes her head and swings her attention back to the pair with a slight smile. Nothing further is said, for the time being; she just watches the other two and is attentive.
A great yawn heaps its way through the door of Tav's mouth. "Ye. Lots. And lots. Of troubles. The least of which being Immath keeps sneezing while chewing firestone at the worst ti-.." Speaking of which. Tav's head snaps to the side and her eyes, finally starting to recede, unfocus. "..Ah. I'm being told it's bedtime now, or I sleep on the floor of the bowl." She laughs, standing and popping a kiss onto each girl's head. "Right. Well. Thank you for the brief conversation.. Feeling better. Much better. Good night, ladies." Stagger.
Essdara smiles tenderly at Tavaly as she gets up. "Tell Immath I said hi? ANd Tava... I'm always aruond, ok? And I'll always love you. You can always find me if you want to talk, or just need someone to hug you and not ask questions. Faranth knows I've needed both lately, and can't thank those that cared to be there enough." She glances at Aida.
Blinking mildly at the kiss popped to her head, Aida chuckles and rolls her eyes, flashing up a warm smile. "Sleep well," she offers lightly, lifting a hand to give the girl a wave. "And...if you can find a way to take some time for yourself...do it. Good night." With that said, she looks over towards Dara again and...sticks her tongue out at her, making a face.
Essdara grins, and slides a seat over. "Tava was there, you know. The night that I had the fight with K'sar and Kierom. I really didn't think she'd talk to me again, any more than they will." She looks over to Aida, and then down at her ankle. "How's it healing, dearheart? I've been very good, and not bugged you about it for days..."
"I maintain that you should talk to K'sar," Aida points out, lifting and wiggling her wounded ankle in Dara's direction lightly. "And it's healing just fine -- as if you were expecting me to begin to admit to anything else?" Wink. Once she actually holds the ankle still, the fact that it remains bandaged is clear, as is a /slight/ bit of swelling that persists. "I like K'sar. You like K'sar. Fix whatever it is, or I might take it in my mind to meddle." Eyebrows lift.
Essdara smiles a little. "I want to, Aida. Our argument... It was stupid, and shouldn't have happened. I just don't know what to say. He /did/ hurt me, but that happens sometimes. You've done worse, and are about my favourite person anywhere." She makes a face. "Maybe, if I can get him alone, we can work it out. Rysia probably wants to kill me, though."
"'Hey, K'sar -- you hurt my feelings, though I know it wasn't on purpose. It was stupid and the whole thing shouldn't have happened, but arguments between friends happen and that's just part of life. I care, I want to make it better, so let's talk.'" Aida suggests, then offers over an angelic little smile. "And why would Rysia want to kill you? And you could probably just talk to him quietly in the infirmary. Probably not too impossibly difficult."
Essdara makes a face. "He is upset because I think he and Rysia should be more than they are. Says she deserves better than he can give, being a rider." She shrugs. "Doesn't change the fact that she loves him. But, yeah. I'll try to get inand see him soon." She sighs and leans over, putting her head on Aida's shoulder. "Can I have a week withtout drama? Please?"
"Oh." Aida falls quiet for a long moment at that, then exhales a soft sigh and lifts her arm to wrap it around the other girl's shoulders, hugging her close. "No, you can't. Unfortunately. It's winter and there's bad stuff going down, so it's very unlikely." She turns her head, leaning over to press a kiss to Dara's hair. "It'll all be okay, though."
Essdara nods, and gives a soft sigh. "You're very right there, alas. It's going to be a bad turn." She smiles a bit. "But I have you. And I have Ana. That's a good place to start, in my opinion."
"It's going to be whatever we make out of it for a turn," Aida counters lightly, squeezing again. "There's always something to be happy about. It's going to be /rough/, certainly, but I can't say I agree that it is going to be actually *bad*."
Essdara chuckles softly. "I like your views better than mine, then. Did I ever apologise for abandoning you the other night? It wasn't very considerate of me. But I don't get to see her very often, and hate to miss an oppertunity."
"How did it go?" Aida asks promptly, tilting her head to the side and twisting enough to let her look at Dara's face, her curiosity obvious. "I don't mind it at *all*, believe me. But how did it /go/?"
Essdara grins a little. "It was really nice. She gave me a present, and we had snacks, and cider. Talked a long time, and I stayed the night. Like I do with you." She sighs, but this time is a pleased one. She takes a small something out of a pocket, showing it to Aida; a green dragon belt buckle. "Still dunno why she got it for me, but isn't it pretty?"
"A present?" Aida perks a bit, letting go of the other girl enough that she can lean over and peek at the buckle. "Oooooo. /Great/." Oh, that sounds entirely satisfied, it does. "I'm very pleased, and yes -- it's very pretty. And she /probably/ got it for you because she /likes/ you. It sounds like it was a good night, and I definitely approve. I'm glad you abandoned me." Nod.
Essdara blushes, softly, and smiles a bit more. "Do you really think so? I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much, but... We do always seem to have a nice time. I wish she'd gotten to the party, but she didn't until late." She takes Aida's hand and gives it a squeeze. "You should get to know her, some time. I think you would like her."
"I think so, yes; that's why I excused myself. It seemed that way," Aida replies lightly, giving Dara's hand a squeeze in return and offering a grin. "You're getting to spend time with her regardless, so all is good, even if she didn't make it to the party. And....I am sure I will get to know her sometime. There's actually precious few people that I *don't* like."
Esmene arrives through the long tunnel that comes from the lower caverns.
Essdara grins at Aida. She and Aida are sitting in front of one of the fires in the nearly deserted living caverns; late night in the weyr is not a busy time for socialites. "Well, we'll see what happens when I see her again. It's a shame they keep the weyrlings so busy, I barely see Tava either. Though, they should probably be graduating soon, seeing as they have their own weyrs and stuff now."
Aida's boots are beneath her chair and her jacket is hanging on the back of it; she's happily curled up in her seat, right at the moment, looking generally comfortable. "They have a great deal to learn, I expect," she says. "But them graduating soon will be good. I mean, especially if it means your friend will have more free time. That would be fantastic."
Esmene walks in from the lower caverns, a mug of something hot in one hand, which she holds up close to her face for warmth. She's heading for the hearths already when she notices Dara and Aida. Spotting them, she stops, hesitating for a moment before at last progressing on toward them, a pleasant smile on her face. "Um, Essdara? ...Aida?" She's less sure about that second name.
Essdara nods. "Yeah. I think they are betweening now, so that manes soon, that's the last thing really. Also means they will be helping out in actual falls..." Her smile fades at that. Distraction is quickly available, though, as the older kitchen helper comes up. She offers her a warm smile. "Hey there, Esmene. Is that right? What're you doing up so late, or is insomnia the word of the day?"
Starting to nod agreeably to Dara, Aida's attention swings up and over towards Esmene when the girl speaks up. She promptly smiles and nods, lifting a hand to wiggle her fingers that way. "It's me," she agrees. "Hello, Esmene. Pull up a chair and sit with us."
"Hello!" Esmene smiles brightly at the acknowledgement and the invitations to join the conversation, which she gladly accepts, pulling up a chair as ordered. "Yeah, I can't sleep. You two neither?"
Essdara makes a face. "Not uncommon for me, I am afraid. But we get by!" A grin, and a stretch. "So what's got you awake? Too much thinking, nightmares, lonliness? Or just plain not tired?"
"Alas," Aida agrees, curling up and settling more comfortably into her chair. "Seems to be something I've been having a problem with lately myself," she admits. "But...I will sleep eventually, I expect. Maybe sooner rather than later." A yawn is stifled, to punctuate that statement.
Esmene considers the question. "Well, I took a nap earlier this afternoon, so that's, you know. That's one thing. And I don't know..." Esmene fidgets, shifts in her chair, pulls it a little closer to the fire. "I guess I'm just not tired tonight." She takes in Aida's yawn with interest, but without comment.
Essdara grins a bit, "If you are getting naps in, Esmene, then we clearly aren't working you hard enough in the kitchens." She glances at Aida as she yawns, with an amused smile. "Lucky you, then, Ai." Back to Esmene, "How're you settling in? Still having trouble keeping the mess in check when you are working?"
"Yawn does not mean I'm sleepy," Aida points out lazily, folding her arms on the arm of the chair and scooting around until she's got her cheek resting down on them. "It just means...I'm yawny." She settles her gaze on the fire, letting the flames catch and hold her superficial attention.
Not working hard enough! Esmene's already large eyes widen at the suggestion. "Oh, no - I just fell asleep for like - I mean, it wasn't even really a /nap/." She glances at Aida's apparent tiredness, but once again declines to comment on it other than to say, "Okay." And now back to Dara. "Oh, I think I'm getting the hang of it. Certainly nothing as bad as the other day." She rolls her eyes at the memory.
Essdara grins. "Good. Once you settle in, we'll give you a proper share." She teases. And speaking of teasing, "And ignore much of Aida says. If she says it about herself, it's probably the opposite of truth. Like, if you ask her if her ankle hurts, I bet she says no..."
There's a sidelong glance over at Dara, and Aida raises an eyebrow. "The opposite of truth, mmm?" She asks, lifting her head up and giving the girl a more direct skeptical look. "I think I'm hurt." She pouts briefly, then glances over towards Esmene. "If she said that about you, would you be hurt? I...definitely think I'm hurt. Goodness."
Esmene looks a little nervous at the suggestion of more work. "Oh. Okay." Then she thinks for a moment and smiles, perhaps suddenly realizing that she's being teased. As for the information about Aida, she looks relieved. For a moment. "What? About me? Well.../do/ you say the opposite of truth?" This girl has some problems with sarcasm, apparently.
Essdara smiles very sweetly at Aida. "Shall I kiss you until your feelings are all better, dear?" She giggles, then, and shakes her head. She turns then towards the fire, and stretches a bit, arms over her head. "No more work, I promise. You're doing a good job, not heard a single bad thing about you, and that's saying something in the hive of gossip."
"I bite," Aida points out cheerily to Dara, snapping her teeth in that direction before she turns her head back to flash a grin towards Esmene. "Of course not," she says. "Not most of the time, at least. It's probably more like 'half the time if it's about myself it's the opposite of truth'. So long as you take into consideration that I do not consider words that are blatantly false yet given with a sarcastic tone to give them away as actually lying, because it clearly gets my intent across." Blink. Blink. Innocent smile.
"Really?" Esmene looks genuinely surprised as well as quite pleased that nothing bad has been said about her. The good mood extends to Aida, who doesn't even make Esmene nervous this time. "Yeah, that makes sense, I guess." She finishes off her drink - now revealed to be some kind of tea - and sets the mug aside. "So, Aida, where are you from?" Look at this, she's even bringing up her own new subject.
Essdara nods, with a gentle smile. "Really. And if nothing else, you can peel a tuber just fine, and we go through enough of /those/ in a day to keep ten of you busy." A soft laugh for Aida. "You say that like I should be afraid, Aida. I've been bitten by worse than you. There was this one greenrider, just before her dragon went up..." She stop, and glances at Esmene. "Umm. Maybe I /won't/ tell that story. Tell the poor girl where you come from?"
"I also kick and scratch and *not* in a good way," Aida informs Essdara loftily, lifting an eyebrow at the other girl. "And...otherwise get cranky. It's very not pretty, you'll just have to take my word for it." Nod. And then her attention is swinging over to Esmene, a bright smile flashed. "You'll have to forgive her. She's trouble. Lots and lots of trouble. I'm from a little cothold a few days away from High Reaches Hold. Very small. Quiet."
It takes Esmene only a short moment longer than it should for her to realize why Dara might not want to tell that story, and then the mere suggestion makes her blush. "It's okay..." she says, though who knows if anyone's going to believe her. Her eyes narrow a little at Aida, debating whether she ought to believe her warnings about herself. "...Right," she says, in what she hopes is the sort of non-committal fashion that can be applied to whatever version is most appropriate. Her eyes slide back to Essdara. "So...you guys are both trouble, then." It looks like she's starting to catch on. Starting.
Essdara grins impishly. "Me? I'm sweetness and sunshine, haven't you heard the rumors?" She giggles then, and shakes her head. "We both enjoy ourselves as best we can. She's my best friend, and sometimes, I forget to play nice around people who aren't her. I promise, I'd only kiss her if she wanted me to, and I don't think she'd really ever bite me. Slap me, kick me, pull my hair, sure, but not /bite/."
"I am no trouble at all!" Aida protests promptly, her eyes going wide as she gives Esmene a shocked look. "What on Pern would give you the impression that I am trouble? Just because I hang out with her?" She sends a glance towards Dara, then looks back to Esmene. "Really, I'm perfectly nice, sweet, innocent, and *no* trouble at all. Well behaved. Certainly not bossy." Beat. "I would so bite."
Esmene smiles slowly. "Yeah, I know what that's like." Friends, she means. Her gaze slides from one to the other and back for a moment. "Right." By which she doesn't actually mean 'right.' See, sometimes Esmene can say the opposite of what she means, too! Now, philosophically: "I've never bitten anyone, I don't think."
Essdara snorts. "'Least one of us is innocent, eh?" A giggle, which she cuts off at Esmene's final comment. You can see the fight on her face, her desire to be nice warring with the desire to flirt. It's with that impish, dangerous smile that she comments, "Well, if you ever want practice, you just let me know, ok?"
Esmene's comment has Aida promptly looking over at Dara's face, and her lips start to twitch. When the response finally does come, she starts cracking up. There is laughter of the sort that only comes when one is exhausted that follows, too little sleep blowing the amusement she finds in reply maybe a wee bit out of proportion.
Esmene pauses. "Um - " Then Aida starts laughing, and Esmene isn't quite sure what to think. She looks from one to the other, unsure of what to do next, and finally decides on the alternative that looks best: she too begins to laugh, though it's understandably more with discomfort than derision.
Essdara shoots a glare at Aida, and then pouts. "Well, I can't help it if she's going to give me lines like that, Aida. She /is/ pretty, and you know what I'm like around pretty girls." Hrmph. She looks back at the poor, uncomfortable kitchen worker, and manages a gentle smile. "But you have nothing to fear from me, promise. Never done anything someone didn't want, don't plan to start now."
Aida continues giggling, the sound one that is entirely humored. She does eventually manage to settle down, catching her breath and clearing her throat, pushing herself to sitting up. "It's really okay," she assures Esmene, a bit breathlessly. "She won't, and I actually really am decently nice. It's just...the line, and Dara's reaction -- I /knew/ she was gonna say something." There's a flashed grin, and then she's moving to slide to her feet. "I need to try and go to bed."
Pretty? Esmene blinks at Essdara, then actually glances behind herself to see who she could be referring to. Turning back, she blushes again. "What?" she says, and then puts on a smile. "Oh, um, it's okay. I mean, I get it." See? Smile. Fake smile, but it almost counts.
Essdara rolls her eyes at Aida. "I don't think you are really reassuring her..." As Aida stands, she smiles a bit. "But do sleep well. Maybe I'll see you later?" She looks back to Esemene, and nods firmly. "Yes, pretty. As in, pleasing to look at. A curse to live with, I know, but I think you will manage to cope."
"Yeah, get it or no, I know we're hard to swallow," Aida tells Esmene, offering a warm smile. "We mean well. Promise." She reaches to ruffle Dara's hair before collecting her jacket and her boots. "I'll see you later, yes, Dara. And I'm going to sleep well. I hope." There's a nod for both of them, and then she and her bare feet are limping off in the direction of the tunnels to the lower caverns.
Esmene blushes. Again. Curse this fair, blush-able skin! "Oh - no. But, thank you." Suddenly her hands are looking very interesting. From there, her gaze flicks to Aida, and she smiles just a little weakly. "G'night!" she calls after her as she gets up and limps off, and she turns back to Dara, hoping for a hasty change of subject. "So how did she hurt her ankle?"
Aida ventures down the long tunnel that leads to the lower caverns.
Essdara coughs, softly. "See, now there's a story." She glances at Aida's fading back. "Let's just say, a brief moment of inattention led to her falling off a rock, and somehow hurting her ankle in the process. It was, really, my fault, though not getting it looked at is her own doing, but, that's Aida..." She makes a face. "She doesn't like to admit any weakness.
Esmene blinks. "She isn't getting it looked at?" Pay no attention to the slow way she's inching her chair away from Dara. Nooo attention at all. "How long ago did she hurt it? I guess she's getting around okay." Not exactly a logical flow of ideas, but it'll do.
Essdara is ever oblivious, and doesn't notice any scooching. "She works in the infirmary, so I guess she knows how to takes care of it herself. I'd just have felt better if she talked to an actual healer, you know?" She shrugs, and looks over at the fire, smiling a bit. "She's an odd one, our Aida, but I'd be lost without her so what can I do/"
Esmene nods. "Oh, that makes sense." Inch, inch. Scoot-scoot. The distance between the two women widens imperceptibly as time goes on. "Yeah, she seems okay." She leans a little diagonally in her chair, under the thin guise of adjusting in her seat, so that she's leaning toward the fire and away from Dara at the same time. "So, um, which meals do you work in the kitchens, again? All of them?" She tries to sound innocently curious.
Actions and questions click, and she frowns, just a little, keeping her gaze away from the girl. "Early breakfast and lunch, usually. But it's a pretty big kitchen, wouldn't be surprising if we didn't see each other, right?" Her tone is carefully neutral, though certainly lacking a warmth of earlier. She stretches a bit. "Perhaps I should try to sleep, too."
Esmene stops moving, deeming the distance distant enough. She nods, glances over at Essdara, then glances away. She's not completely oblivious, after all. "Well, um, I'm sure we'll see each other sometimes," she offers helpfully. Such a little people-pleaser. "Yeah, it is kind of late, I guess."
Essdara is still a long moment, then looks over to Esmene with a sad smile. "It's ok not to like me, Esmene. Not many people do, and I'm used to it. I know I'm strange and intense, but, well, that's me." She stands, and carefully pushes her chair back in under the table it came from. "It was nice to see you, Esemene. I hope your night improves once I'm gone, and you get to sleep."
Esmene blinks. This kind of up-front discussion is not quite what she's used to. "What? No, of course I like you!" she protests, in a chirpy tone that speaks of long practice. "I mean, you're - you're fine." She glances down at her toes. "Um, yeah, it was nice to see you too. Goodnight. I'll, um, I'll see you." Hoping to sound sincere.
Essdara shakes her head, and with a shrug, walks away towards the lower caverns.
Where: Living Caverns, HRW
When: After midnight, day 17 month 1 turn 2
Comment: Insomnia abounds. One friend is comforted, another friend is teased, and a third is lost.
Apparently, Dara isn't the only insomniac in the Weyr. Aida has started to prove similar, it seems; the young woman has claimed a chair and drug it fairly close to one of the fires along the west wall. She's curled up in it and is staring at the flames at the current moment, her jacket hanging over the back of said chair in a 'drying out' sort of position, her boots off and sitting beneath it. She is at least behaving herself, in that her right ankle is lifted mostly above the rest of her body by virtue of how she's twisted about and sitting. Yes, comfortable. There is fire staring. It's *so* very interesting. It really, really is.
Speak the devil's name and she shall appear. She comes out from the lower caverns, stretching and yawning while she does so. She looks around the desolate caverns, nearly empty at this hour, and spots Aida. A slight smile, and the girl is off towards her friend. As she comes up on her, she speaks in a quiet voice. "You're easier to find than I expected. I got lonely and looked for you, and you weren't there." She makes a face, "Can't sleep either, then, I take it?"
Tavaly arrives through the long tunnel that comes from the lower caverns.
"Sleep?" Aida asks, uncurling a little bit from her chair in front of the fire that she's sitting in. She doesn't uncurl all the way, leaving her bare foot up on the arm and lifted -- but still, she does straighten enough to look up and over towards Dara instead of at the fire. There's a smile flashed, and she lifts one hand to give a little wiggle of her fingers. "No, I can't'," she confirms. "It...I just couldn't get to sleep. Unfortunately. But yes, I am usually remarkably easy to find. It's rare enough that I'm not predictable, especially when I'm supposed to be sleeping. I would ask what you're doing up, but...even I know that's a silly question."
It's not a question of why she's up, either. Everyone, by now, knows of the insomnia the greenriding weyrling suffers. However, it's the puffy eyes and runny nose and the just-got-done crying look that might take some explaining. Silent as death, the girl steals up from the lower caverns, cornering the table upon which sits the klah with a distracted urgency. Don't mind her.
Essdara pulls a chair over next to Aida, giving her a small smirk. "Yeah, I know, I never sleep well. S'why I was looking for you. I've found you to be one of the more reliable things for going to sleep. It's weird, until recently, I'd never known how nice it was to share a cot with nothing happening. Now, I find myself craving exactly that. I think you are a bad influence on me." She hasn't noticed her other friend, clearly.
"Good influence," Aida promptly declares, though her voice touches a bit absent as those blue eyes do catch sight of Tavaly. The girl's condition is taken in in a heartbeat, and she's sitting up the rest of the way and reaching out with her left foot to poke at Dara's arm, then gesture with it towards the table with the klah, or more specifically the greenrider at it. Rather than offering any words on the topic, she lifts a hand and points to her own eyes, making sure that Dara's attention is drawn there first.
Pour. Pour. Spill. Ow, hurty burning feeling in the hand. With a soft hiss, the greenrider shakes hot klah droplets from her hand, sipping at the mug as quietly as possible. There are others here, and the last thing she wants to do is interrupt. And/or betray herself. After all. Tavvy crying? Not the sort of thing she needs spread around. Especially when she has a reputation for WINNING barfights. So, face to the wall, she merely stands there, mug in hands. Despite herself, an audible sniff rings out through the near-abandoned cavern.
Essdara doesn't debate good or bad, instead following Aida's gaze to Tavaly, and of course to the puffy eyes and tear-trails. She frowns slightly and looks concerned. She murmers softly to Aida, "I'll be right back, dearheart." She stands, and moves over towards the greenrider. Her greeting to her is tentative and almost shy. "Tava? You ok?"
Oh geez. Aida cringes in sympathy, watching Tavaly as Dara approaches the other woman. It's not so much sympathy for whatever is upsetting the girl as it is for being upset, trying to hide it, and getting caught, but hey. The girl shakes her head lightly and sinks down in her chair again, turning her eyes back to the fire. Not watching. Really. Please ignore that tilt of her head that betrays she's listening that way fairly intently.
"I.. uh.." Stammer. "Soot. In my eyes. From.. firestone practice." That happened over 12 hours ago. SHUT UP. So she's bad at lying. Whatev. "Got.. crap." She sips her klah, shoulders sagging. "Just.. a lot of things going on. It's better. Now. ..though." She says, not looking at Dara, save for small glances at the girl's shoes. "You mad at me, too? Like ev'ryone else?"
Essdara blinks, and slips an arm around Tavaly's waist, and attempting to guide her back to where she was sitting with Aida. "C'mon, sit with us. And why on Pern would I be mad at you? I was going to ask if /you/ were mad at /me/." She makes a face. "I was a right ass the other night."
Oh, incoming. Aida uncurls entirely and sits up, giving a little roll of her shoulders as bare feet (her boots are under her chair) hit the stone of the floor. The smile she offers over towards the pair is warm and friendly, apparently oblivious to the signs of recent tears.
She kind of.. cackles at that. "If you're an ass, Dara, then I'm whatever comes outta ya. I taunted K'sar to his feet, nearly choked Kierom and.." She pauses, glancing at Aida. "Just about popped you in the jaw." She says, wiping her nose on the back of a sleeve as she continues to look at Ai. "Wanted t'say 'm sorry 'bout that. Kinda lost my head for a while. All kinda.. built its way up. Friends?" She offers a not-snot-wipey hand to the healer-gal, as Dara successfully leads her to the corner. "Yer cute when you're not all scowly and bossy." Tav says, putting on her best smile for Aida.
Essdara gives Aida a mock surprised look around Tavaly. "You're not bossy? Must be cause you haven't said anything..." She settles Tavaly into what was her chair, and pulls yet another over. She settles in it, and puts an arm around Tava. "Aids is a very good person, and very dear to me. As are you, Tava. As for K'sar and Kierom... I hope it wasn't me that caused you to yell at them? I didn't mean to cause any trouble, I really didn't."
Sliding to her feet when the hand is offered to her, Aida clasps the greenrider's hand and gives a squeeze and a solid shake to go with it. "There's absolutely no need to apologize," she states firmly. "It happens, and even if you had hit me, I'd have found a way to forgive you -- and it would not have been difficult. Friends." Beat. "Believe me, I did not /want/ to try and stop you. So...I may be a bit more understanding than I otherwise might be." That's followed by a wink. And then she rolls her eyes at Dara. "Don't listen to her. I think we've already established that I'm at least a horrible influence. As far as the bossy, well. Guilty."
"What, I need a reason to pop someone in the head? Nah. Wasn' you. This happened.. after. That. I escaped to my weyr after that morning. Came down when Dananth told Immath that Kierom'd been in a fight." She slumps slightly. "Got mad. Roughed 'im up. Stuff." She looks at Aida with a smile and nods her head. "It's settled. We'll all be wenches."
Essdara grins softly. "I think I'm more the bad influence on her, truth be told." She leans against Tavaly. "So is there a reason for all your tension and frustration, dearheart, or is it just an overload with all that's gone on this turn so far? I know I'm at wits end to cope with it, and I'm barely involved."
There's a nod of agreement to the 'it's settled', and Aida shifts back and flops down into her chair again, promptly curling back up. She sends a glance over in the direction of the tunnel to the bowl, then shakes her head and swings her attention back to the pair with a slight smile. Nothing further is said, for the time being; she just watches the other two and is attentive.
A great yawn heaps its way through the door of Tav's mouth. "Ye. Lots. And lots. Of troubles. The least of which being Immath keeps sneezing while chewing firestone at the worst ti-.." Speaking of which. Tav's head snaps to the side and her eyes, finally starting to recede, unfocus. "..Ah. I'm being told it's bedtime now, or I sleep on the floor of the bowl." She laughs, standing and popping a kiss onto each girl's head. "Right. Well. Thank you for the brief conversation.. Feeling better. Much better. Good night, ladies." Stagger.
Essdara smiles tenderly at Tavaly as she gets up. "Tell Immath I said hi? ANd Tava... I'm always aruond, ok? And I'll always love you. You can always find me if you want to talk, or just need someone to hug you and not ask questions. Faranth knows I've needed both lately, and can't thank those that cared to be there enough." She glances at Aida.
Blinking mildly at the kiss popped to her head, Aida chuckles and rolls her eyes, flashing up a warm smile. "Sleep well," she offers lightly, lifting a hand to give the girl a wave. "And...if you can find a way to take some time for yourself...do it. Good night." With that said, she looks over towards Dara again and...sticks her tongue out at her, making a face.
Essdara grins, and slides a seat over. "Tava was there, you know. The night that I had the fight with K'sar and Kierom. I really didn't think she'd talk to me again, any more than they will." She looks over to Aida, and then down at her ankle. "How's it healing, dearheart? I've been very good, and not bugged you about it for days..."
"I maintain that you should talk to K'sar," Aida points out, lifting and wiggling her wounded ankle in Dara's direction lightly. "And it's healing just fine -- as if you were expecting me to begin to admit to anything else?" Wink. Once she actually holds the ankle still, the fact that it remains bandaged is clear, as is a /slight/ bit of swelling that persists. "I like K'sar. You like K'sar. Fix whatever it is, or I might take it in my mind to meddle." Eyebrows lift.
Essdara smiles a little. "I want to, Aida. Our argument... It was stupid, and shouldn't have happened. I just don't know what to say. He /did/ hurt me, but that happens sometimes. You've done worse, and are about my favourite person anywhere." She makes a face. "Maybe, if I can get him alone, we can work it out. Rysia probably wants to kill me, though."
"'Hey, K'sar -- you hurt my feelings, though I know it wasn't on purpose. It was stupid and the whole thing shouldn't have happened, but arguments between friends happen and that's just part of life. I care, I want to make it better, so let's talk.'" Aida suggests, then offers over an angelic little smile. "And why would Rysia want to kill you? And you could probably just talk to him quietly in the infirmary. Probably not too impossibly difficult."
Essdara makes a face. "He is upset because I think he and Rysia should be more than they are. Says she deserves better than he can give, being a rider." She shrugs. "Doesn't change the fact that she loves him. But, yeah. I'll try to get inand see him soon." She sighs and leans over, putting her head on Aida's shoulder. "Can I have a week withtout drama? Please?"
"Oh." Aida falls quiet for a long moment at that, then exhales a soft sigh and lifts her arm to wrap it around the other girl's shoulders, hugging her close. "No, you can't. Unfortunately. It's winter and there's bad stuff going down, so it's very unlikely." She turns her head, leaning over to press a kiss to Dara's hair. "It'll all be okay, though."
Essdara nods, and gives a soft sigh. "You're very right there, alas. It's going to be a bad turn." She smiles a bit. "But I have you. And I have Ana. That's a good place to start, in my opinion."
"It's going to be whatever we make out of it for a turn," Aida counters lightly, squeezing again. "There's always something to be happy about. It's going to be /rough/, certainly, but I can't say I agree that it is going to be actually *bad*."
Essdara chuckles softly. "I like your views better than mine, then. Did I ever apologise for abandoning you the other night? It wasn't very considerate of me. But I don't get to see her very often, and hate to miss an oppertunity."
"How did it go?" Aida asks promptly, tilting her head to the side and twisting enough to let her look at Dara's face, her curiosity obvious. "I don't mind it at *all*, believe me. But how did it /go/?"
Essdara grins a little. "It was really nice. She gave me a present, and we had snacks, and cider. Talked a long time, and I stayed the night. Like I do with you." She sighs, but this time is a pleased one. She takes a small something out of a pocket, showing it to Aida; a green dragon belt buckle. "Still dunno why she got it for me, but isn't it pretty?"
"A present?" Aida perks a bit, letting go of the other girl enough that she can lean over and peek at the buckle. "Oooooo. /Great/." Oh, that sounds entirely satisfied, it does. "I'm very pleased, and yes -- it's very pretty. And she /probably/ got it for you because she /likes/ you. It sounds like it was a good night, and I definitely approve. I'm glad you abandoned me." Nod.
Essdara blushes, softly, and smiles a bit more. "Do you really think so? I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much, but... We do always seem to have a nice time. I wish she'd gotten to the party, but she didn't until late." She takes Aida's hand and gives it a squeeze. "You should get to know her, some time. I think you would like her."
"I think so, yes; that's why I excused myself. It seemed that way," Aida replies lightly, giving Dara's hand a squeeze in return and offering a grin. "You're getting to spend time with her regardless, so all is good, even if she didn't make it to the party. And....I am sure I will get to know her sometime. There's actually precious few people that I *don't* like."
Esmene arrives through the long tunnel that comes from the lower caverns.
Essdara grins at Aida. She and Aida are sitting in front of one of the fires in the nearly deserted living caverns; late night in the weyr is not a busy time for socialites. "Well, we'll see what happens when I see her again. It's a shame they keep the weyrlings so busy, I barely see Tava either. Though, they should probably be graduating soon, seeing as they have their own weyrs and stuff now."
Aida's boots are beneath her chair and her jacket is hanging on the back of it; she's happily curled up in her seat, right at the moment, looking generally comfortable. "They have a great deal to learn, I expect," she says. "But them graduating soon will be good. I mean, especially if it means your friend will have more free time. That would be fantastic."
Esmene walks in from the lower caverns, a mug of something hot in one hand, which she holds up close to her face for warmth. She's heading for the hearths already when she notices Dara and Aida. Spotting them, she stops, hesitating for a moment before at last progressing on toward them, a pleasant smile on her face. "Um, Essdara? ...Aida?" She's less sure about that second name.
Essdara nods. "Yeah. I think they are betweening now, so that manes soon, that's the last thing really. Also means they will be helping out in actual falls..." Her smile fades at that. Distraction is quickly available, though, as the older kitchen helper comes up. She offers her a warm smile. "Hey there, Esmene. Is that right? What're you doing up so late, or is insomnia the word of the day?"
Starting to nod agreeably to Dara, Aida's attention swings up and over towards Esmene when the girl speaks up. She promptly smiles and nods, lifting a hand to wiggle her fingers that way. "It's me," she agrees. "Hello, Esmene. Pull up a chair and sit with us."
"Hello!" Esmene smiles brightly at the acknowledgement and the invitations to join the conversation, which she gladly accepts, pulling up a chair as ordered. "Yeah, I can't sleep. You two neither?"
Essdara makes a face. "Not uncommon for me, I am afraid. But we get by!" A grin, and a stretch. "So what's got you awake? Too much thinking, nightmares, lonliness? Or just plain not tired?"
"Alas," Aida agrees, curling up and settling more comfortably into her chair. "Seems to be something I've been having a problem with lately myself," she admits. "But...I will sleep eventually, I expect. Maybe sooner rather than later." A yawn is stifled, to punctuate that statement.
Esmene considers the question. "Well, I took a nap earlier this afternoon, so that's, you know. That's one thing. And I don't know..." Esmene fidgets, shifts in her chair, pulls it a little closer to the fire. "I guess I'm just not tired tonight." She takes in Aida's yawn with interest, but without comment.
Essdara grins a bit, "If you are getting naps in, Esmene, then we clearly aren't working you hard enough in the kitchens." She glances at Aida as she yawns, with an amused smile. "Lucky you, then, Ai." Back to Esmene, "How're you settling in? Still having trouble keeping the mess in check when you are working?"
"Yawn does not mean I'm sleepy," Aida points out lazily, folding her arms on the arm of the chair and scooting around until she's got her cheek resting down on them. "It just means...I'm yawny." She settles her gaze on the fire, letting the flames catch and hold her superficial attention.
Not working hard enough! Esmene's already large eyes widen at the suggestion. "Oh, no - I just fell asleep for like - I mean, it wasn't even really a /nap/." She glances at Aida's apparent tiredness, but once again declines to comment on it other than to say, "Okay." And now back to Dara. "Oh, I think I'm getting the hang of it. Certainly nothing as bad as the other day." She rolls her eyes at the memory.
Essdara grins. "Good. Once you settle in, we'll give you a proper share." She teases. And speaking of teasing, "And ignore much of Aida says. If she says it about herself, it's probably the opposite of truth. Like, if you ask her if her ankle hurts, I bet she says no..."
There's a sidelong glance over at Dara, and Aida raises an eyebrow. "The opposite of truth, mmm?" She asks, lifting her head up and giving the girl a more direct skeptical look. "I think I'm hurt." She pouts briefly, then glances over towards Esmene. "If she said that about you, would you be hurt? I...definitely think I'm hurt. Goodness."
Esmene looks a little nervous at the suggestion of more work. "Oh. Okay." Then she thinks for a moment and smiles, perhaps suddenly realizing that she's being teased. As for the information about Aida, she looks relieved. For a moment. "What? About me? Well.../do/ you say the opposite of truth?" This girl has some problems with sarcasm, apparently.
Essdara smiles very sweetly at Aida. "Shall I kiss you until your feelings are all better, dear?" She giggles, then, and shakes her head. She turns then towards the fire, and stretches a bit, arms over her head. "No more work, I promise. You're doing a good job, not heard a single bad thing about you, and that's saying something in the hive of gossip."
"I bite," Aida points out cheerily to Dara, snapping her teeth in that direction before she turns her head back to flash a grin towards Esmene. "Of course not," she says. "Not most of the time, at least. It's probably more like 'half the time if it's about myself it's the opposite of truth'. So long as you take into consideration that I do not consider words that are blatantly false yet given with a sarcastic tone to give them away as actually lying, because it clearly gets my intent across." Blink. Blink. Innocent smile.
"Really?" Esmene looks genuinely surprised as well as quite pleased that nothing bad has been said about her. The good mood extends to Aida, who doesn't even make Esmene nervous this time. "Yeah, that makes sense, I guess." She finishes off her drink - now revealed to be some kind of tea - and sets the mug aside. "So, Aida, where are you from?" Look at this, she's even bringing up her own new subject.
Essdara nods, with a gentle smile. "Really. And if nothing else, you can peel a tuber just fine, and we go through enough of /those/ in a day to keep ten of you busy." A soft laugh for Aida. "You say that like I should be afraid, Aida. I've been bitten by worse than you. There was this one greenrider, just before her dragon went up..." She stop, and glances at Esmene. "Umm. Maybe I /won't/ tell that story. Tell the poor girl where you come from?"
"I also kick and scratch and *not* in a good way," Aida informs Essdara loftily, lifting an eyebrow at the other girl. "And...otherwise get cranky. It's very not pretty, you'll just have to take my word for it." Nod. And then her attention is swinging over to Esmene, a bright smile flashed. "You'll have to forgive her. She's trouble. Lots and lots of trouble. I'm from a little cothold a few days away from High Reaches Hold. Very small. Quiet."
It takes Esmene only a short moment longer than it should for her to realize why Dara might not want to tell that story, and then the mere suggestion makes her blush. "It's okay..." she says, though who knows if anyone's going to believe her. Her eyes narrow a little at Aida, debating whether she ought to believe her warnings about herself. "...Right," she says, in what she hopes is the sort of non-committal fashion that can be applied to whatever version is most appropriate. Her eyes slide back to Essdara. "So...you guys are both trouble, then." It looks like she's starting to catch on. Starting.
Essdara grins impishly. "Me? I'm sweetness and sunshine, haven't you heard the rumors?" She giggles then, and shakes her head. "We both enjoy ourselves as best we can. She's my best friend, and sometimes, I forget to play nice around people who aren't her. I promise, I'd only kiss her if she wanted me to, and I don't think she'd really ever bite me. Slap me, kick me, pull my hair, sure, but not /bite/."
"I am no trouble at all!" Aida protests promptly, her eyes going wide as she gives Esmene a shocked look. "What on Pern would give you the impression that I am trouble? Just because I hang out with her?" She sends a glance towards Dara, then looks back to Esmene. "Really, I'm perfectly nice, sweet, innocent, and *no* trouble at all. Well behaved. Certainly not bossy." Beat. "I would so bite."
Esmene smiles slowly. "Yeah, I know what that's like." Friends, she means. Her gaze slides from one to the other and back for a moment. "Right." By which she doesn't actually mean 'right.' See, sometimes Esmene can say the opposite of what she means, too! Now, philosophically: "I've never bitten anyone, I don't think."
Essdara snorts. "'Least one of us is innocent, eh?" A giggle, which she cuts off at Esmene's final comment. You can see the fight on her face, her desire to be nice warring with the desire to flirt. It's with that impish, dangerous smile that she comments, "Well, if you ever want practice, you just let me know, ok?"
Esmene's comment has Aida promptly looking over at Dara's face, and her lips start to twitch. When the response finally does come, she starts cracking up. There is laughter of the sort that only comes when one is exhausted that follows, too little sleep blowing the amusement she finds in reply maybe a wee bit out of proportion.
Esmene pauses. "Um - " Then Aida starts laughing, and Esmene isn't quite sure what to think. She looks from one to the other, unsure of what to do next, and finally decides on the alternative that looks best: she too begins to laugh, though it's understandably more with discomfort than derision.
Essdara shoots a glare at Aida, and then pouts. "Well, I can't help it if she's going to give me lines like that, Aida. She /is/ pretty, and you know what I'm like around pretty girls." Hrmph. She looks back at the poor, uncomfortable kitchen worker, and manages a gentle smile. "But you have nothing to fear from me, promise. Never done anything someone didn't want, don't plan to start now."
Aida continues giggling, the sound one that is entirely humored. She does eventually manage to settle down, catching her breath and clearing her throat, pushing herself to sitting up. "It's really okay," she assures Esmene, a bit breathlessly. "She won't, and I actually really am decently nice. It's just...the line, and Dara's reaction -- I /knew/ she was gonna say something." There's a flashed grin, and then she's moving to slide to her feet. "I need to try and go to bed."
Pretty? Esmene blinks at Essdara, then actually glances behind herself to see who she could be referring to. Turning back, she blushes again. "What?" she says, and then puts on a smile. "Oh, um, it's okay. I mean, I get it." See? Smile. Fake smile, but it almost counts.
Essdara rolls her eyes at Aida. "I don't think you are really reassuring her..." As Aida stands, she smiles a bit. "But do sleep well. Maybe I'll see you later?" She looks back to Esemene, and nods firmly. "Yes, pretty. As in, pleasing to look at. A curse to live with, I know, but I think you will manage to cope."
"Yeah, get it or no, I know we're hard to swallow," Aida tells Esmene, offering a warm smile. "We mean well. Promise." She reaches to ruffle Dara's hair before collecting her jacket and her boots. "I'll see you later, yes, Dara. And I'm going to sleep well. I hope." There's a nod for both of them, and then she and her bare feet are limping off in the direction of the tunnels to the lower caverns.
Esmene blushes. Again. Curse this fair, blush-able skin! "Oh - no. But, thank you." Suddenly her hands are looking very interesting. From there, her gaze flicks to Aida, and she smiles just a little weakly. "G'night!" she calls after her as she gets up and limps off, and she turns back to Dara, hoping for a hasty change of subject. "So how did she hurt her ankle?"
Aida ventures down the long tunnel that leads to the lower caverns.
Essdara coughs, softly. "See, now there's a story." She glances at Aida's fading back. "Let's just say, a brief moment of inattention led to her falling off a rock, and somehow hurting her ankle in the process. It was, really, my fault, though not getting it looked at is her own doing, but, that's Aida..." She makes a face. "She doesn't like to admit any weakness.
Esmene blinks. "She isn't getting it looked at?" Pay no attention to the slow way she's inching her chair away from Dara. Nooo attention at all. "How long ago did she hurt it? I guess she's getting around okay." Not exactly a logical flow of ideas, but it'll do.
Essdara is ever oblivious, and doesn't notice any scooching. "She works in the infirmary, so I guess she knows how to takes care of it herself. I'd just have felt better if she talked to an actual healer, you know?" She shrugs, and looks over at the fire, smiling a bit. "She's an odd one, our Aida, but I'd be lost without her so what can I do/"
Esmene nods. "Oh, that makes sense." Inch, inch. Scoot-scoot. The distance between the two women widens imperceptibly as time goes on. "Yeah, she seems okay." She leans a little diagonally in her chair, under the thin guise of adjusting in her seat, so that she's leaning toward the fire and away from Dara at the same time. "So, um, which meals do you work in the kitchens, again? All of them?" She tries to sound innocently curious.
Actions and questions click, and she frowns, just a little, keeping her gaze away from the girl. "Early breakfast and lunch, usually. But it's a pretty big kitchen, wouldn't be surprising if we didn't see each other, right?" Her tone is carefully neutral, though certainly lacking a warmth of earlier. She stretches a bit. "Perhaps I should try to sleep, too."
Esmene stops moving, deeming the distance distant enough. She nods, glances over at Essdara, then glances away. She's not completely oblivious, after all. "Well, um, I'm sure we'll see each other sometimes," she offers helpfully. Such a little people-pleaser. "Yeah, it is kind of late, I guess."
Essdara is still a long moment, then looks over to Esmene with a sad smile. "It's ok not to like me, Esmene. Not many people do, and I'm used to it. I know I'm strange and intense, but, well, that's me." She stands, and carefully pushes her chair back in under the table it came from. "It was nice to see you, Esemene. I hope your night improves once I'm gone, and you get to sleep."
Esmene blinks. This kind of up-front discussion is not quite what she's used to. "What? No, of course I like you!" she protests, in a chirpy tone that speaks of long practice. "I mean, you're - you're fine." She glances down at her toes. "Um, yeah, it was nice to see you too. Goodnight. I'll, um, I'll see you." Hoping to sound sincere.
Essdara shakes her head, and with a shrug, walks away towards the lower caverns.