Answer a question
Who: D'ven, Essdara
Where: D'ven's weyr
Comment: A day after Dara's encounter with Nari, Dara pays the bronzerider.
It is late in the evening, the sun having just dropped behind the rim of the bowl. A loud flapping of wings heralds the arrival of a blue dragon; Korth of 3c. From his back disembarks two people; one is a weyr cook, the other her father. Dara gives the man a quick peck on the cheek before taking a few steps away. "D'ven!" She calls out. "It's Dara, might I talk to you?"
D'ven, who has been warned about the approach of Korth by his bronze, seems suprised when it's Essdara who is calling to him. "Certainly, come on, I was expecting...well, Wing buisness." He's currently standing by his desk. "How are you? What can I do for you?"
Essdara smirks a bit, as she moves out of her father's hearing. "Yes, well, I guess in some ways you could consider this wing business, if it helps you." She passes into the inside of the weyr, approaching his desk. Her expression turns serious as she does. "I want to talk to you about a wingrider of yours, D'ven. And you might want a bit of that mead you are so fond of while we do."
"Well, if it's that serious, I should call for Br'ce." D'ven replies, finding a bottle of mead and glasses as he frowns thoughtfully. "So, who is it, and what have they done?" There's a resigned sigh, of the 'Best timing ever' variety.
"No, just you." Dara comments, as she leans on the edge of the desk. "And calling him wuld be a bad idea, though it might make the conversation interesting. No, D'ven. The rider I need to talk to you about is Nari." She watches him carefully as she says that.
D'ven winces slightly, and sighs. "Whatever Nari might have done, Dara, I can assure you it's totally out of character for her. She's...under a lot of stress at the moment. Problems in her private life that I don't feel comfortable disclosing." There's a pause. Please, please, let it be a complaint of some kind against her by the book.
The twitching of a corner of the cook's mouth, but Dara forcibly keeps her expression serious. Her voice does, though, drop a bit. "I know that, D'ven. I am... Decidedly aware of the situation. And the amount of pain the girl is in... And has been through." Intent, she watches him process what she is saying.
"I see." D'ven finally says, having withdrawn inward as Dara talked. "Tell me, Dara, did Nari ask you to come here and intercede on her behalf?" He stays where he is, motionless, as though frozen by her revelation.
Essdara shakes her head, and a slight smile emerges. "D'ven, you know better than that. You know she'd probably die before she could even think about it. No, D'ven, I'm not here for her. At least, not directly. No, I am here because I want to know, D'ven. I want to know your side of what happened. And your side of what is coming."
"I was afraid you might say that." D'ven replies with a humorless smile. "I'm afraid you'll have to be disappointed, then. Because I don't wish to talk about it, and have no intention of doing so." He does shift then, his hands resting flat on the desk as he leans forward slightly, his back to Dara and his head hanging forward a little.
Essdara stands up straight, and makes her way around the desk. She stands next to him, shoulder to shoulder as she looks vaugly in the same direction as him. "Not that simple, D'ven." She says, softly. "Nothing ever is. 'Course, I don't have forever to talk. Da's waiting, cause he doesn't trust me alone with bronzeriders much, so you could wait me out I am sure." She scuffs the toe of one foot against the floor, poking at a bit of dust. "I need to know, D'ven. Cause if you like her like she likes you, then... I need to know." She looks over. "Look. I've been where she is. I can only imagine how it hit you. And if you can't return that, then that is fine. But I need to know."
"Need's a powerful word." D'ven replies softly with a slight shake of his head. "Want, perhaps, I'll give you that. You want to know. Want very badly, perhaps. But need? No, you don't need to know." He half-smiles then. "Dosn't even trust his own Wingsecond to be alone with you? I'm hurt." Despite his words, his tone makes it clear this fact rather endears her father to him.
Essdara snorts, softly. "I'm his only daughter, and even he couldn't not hear the rumors, D'ven." She sighs. "Shard it, D'ven. Can't you make this at least a little easier? I like you, you know that. That's why I am here, cause I like you, and i like her. You're good people. I'm not trying to judge, or pry. Just... Please, talk to me?"
D'ven shakes his head once more. "It dosn't need talking about, Dara. It really dosn't." He replies softly, taking a deep breath. "I like you too. You know I do. I'm not trying to be rude, or telling you to get lost. Please understand that. But...there's nothing that needs saying right now."
Silence. Dara doesn't have a reply right away, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. "Will you answer me one question, D'ven? A simple yes or no question, a simple answer to where to go from here?"
"It depends on the question." D'ven replies thoughtfully. "What I will say is that there's nowhere you need to go from here. Just carry on. This isn't one of those things that needs a team of people to resolve."
Essdara laughs softly and shakes her head. "Nope, not that simple." She looks over at him. "Is it going to bother you, D'ven, if someone else chases her? Tries to show her that she's not ugly, that she is sweet and kind and desireable?" A slight smile, an edge of wistfulness to it. "Just out of curiosity, of course."
"No, of course not." D'ven replies, before taking a deep breath. "But if they hurt her, or make things worse, I'll break both of their legs. To begin with. Anything after that depends entirely on circumstances and how I'm feeling at the time."
Essdara nods softly. "That's all I need to know, D'ven. And trust me... If she gets hurt, you won't have to break legs. The person doing it, I am sure, would have already done for more damage to herself than you ever could. Hurting her more would surely just be a gift to her."
D'ven laughs, though there's little humor in it. "Somehow I get the sense we've moved out of the realms of 'just out of curiosity'." He points out idly. "But, you have your answer." There's a pause, and then a ghost of a smile appears. "I'm sorry, Dara. And I do hope you'll forgive me for this, but." There's a pause, and then his voice is pitched at a more normal volume that will doubtless carry to the ledge. "Honestly, you need to stop leaving your underwear here. It's not as if it even fits me."
Essdara rolls her eyes, looking over at him. "Low blow, D'ven. But you're not T'ral, so you've never had my udnerwear left behind." She stands up straight. "and no, it's out of that realm, but I have my answer. Thank you, D'ven." She shakes her head, moving towards the ledge before the bluerider can come looking. "And there's a lot I'll forgive you for. Making my father think things like that of me? Well, I wouldn't hold your breath. Clear skies, Wingsecond." And she's out to the ledge.
Once Dara has left, D'ven smirks somewhat to himself. "Well, I think we both got what we wanted." He murmurs as he pours himself a drink. "She was right about one thing, though. There is somewhere to go from here...I just need to decide where."
Where: D'ven's weyr
Comment: A day after Dara's encounter with Nari, Dara pays the bronzerider.
It is late in the evening, the sun having just dropped behind the rim of the bowl. A loud flapping of wings heralds the arrival of a blue dragon; Korth of 3c. From his back disembarks two people; one is a weyr cook, the other her father. Dara gives the man a quick peck on the cheek before taking a few steps away. "D'ven!" She calls out. "It's Dara, might I talk to you?"
D'ven, who has been warned about the approach of Korth by his bronze, seems suprised when it's Essdara who is calling to him. "Certainly, come on, I was expecting...well, Wing buisness." He's currently standing by his desk. "How are you? What can I do for you?"
Essdara smirks a bit, as she moves out of her father's hearing. "Yes, well, I guess in some ways you could consider this wing business, if it helps you." She passes into the inside of the weyr, approaching his desk. Her expression turns serious as she does. "I want to talk to you about a wingrider of yours, D'ven. And you might want a bit of that mead you are so fond of while we do."
"Well, if it's that serious, I should call for Br'ce." D'ven replies, finding a bottle of mead and glasses as he frowns thoughtfully. "So, who is it, and what have they done?" There's a resigned sigh, of the 'Best timing ever' variety.
"No, just you." Dara comments, as she leans on the edge of the desk. "And calling him wuld be a bad idea, though it might make the conversation interesting. No, D'ven. The rider I need to talk to you about is Nari." She watches him carefully as she says that.
D'ven winces slightly, and sighs. "Whatever Nari might have done, Dara, I can assure you it's totally out of character for her. She's...under a lot of stress at the moment. Problems in her private life that I don't feel comfortable disclosing." There's a pause. Please, please, let it be a complaint of some kind against her by the book.
The twitching of a corner of the cook's mouth, but Dara forcibly keeps her expression serious. Her voice does, though, drop a bit. "I know that, D'ven. I am... Decidedly aware of the situation. And the amount of pain the girl is in... And has been through." Intent, she watches him process what she is saying.
"I see." D'ven finally says, having withdrawn inward as Dara talked. "Tell me, Dara, did Nari ask you to come here and intercede on her behalf?" He stays where he is, motionless, as though frozen by her revelation.
Essdara shakes her head, and a slight smile emerges. "D'ven, you know better than that. You know she'd probably die before she could even think about it. No, D'ven, I'm not here for her. At least, not directly. No, I am here because I want to know, D'ven. I want to know your side of what happened. And your side of what is coming."
"I was afraid you might say that." D'ven replies with a humorless smile. "I'm afraid you'll have to be disappointed, then. Because I don't wish to talk about it, and have no intention of doing so." He does shift then, his hands resting flat on the desk as he leans forward slightly, his back to Dara and his head hanging forward a little.
Essdara stands up straight, and makes her way around the desk. She stands next to him, shoulder to shoulder as she looks vaugly in the same direction as him. "Not that simple, D'ven." She says, softly. "Nothing ever is. 'Course, I don't have forever to talk. Da's waiting, cause he doesn't trust me alone with bronzeriders much, so you could wait me out I am sure." She scuffs the toe of one foot against the floor, poking at a bit of dust. "I need to know, D'ven. Cause if you like her like she likes you, then... I need to know." She looks over. "Look. I've been where she is. I can only imagine how it hit you. And if you can't return that, then that is fine. But I need to know."
"Need's a powerful word." D'ven replies softly with a slight shake of his head. "Want, perhaps, I'll give you that. You want to know. Want very badly, perhaps. But need? No, you don't need to know." He half-smiles then. "Dosn't even trust his own Wingsecond to be alone with you? I'm hurt." Despite his words, his tone makes it clear this fact rather endears her father to him.
Essdara snorts, softly. "I'm his only daughter, and even he couldn't not hear the rumors, D'ven." She sighs. "Shard it, D'ven. Can't you make this at least a little easier? I like you, you know that. That's why I am here, cause I like you, and i like her. You're good people. I'm not trying to judge, or pry. Just... Please, talk to me?"
D'ven shakes his head once more. "It dosn't need talking about, Dara. It really dosn't." He replies softly, taking a deep breath. "I like you too. You know I do. I'm not trying to be rude, or telling you to get lost. Please understand that. But...there's nothing that needs saying right now."
Silence. Dara doesn't have a reply right away, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. "Will you answer me one question, D'ven? A simple yes or no question, a simple answer to where to go from here?"
"It depends on the question." D'ven replies thoughtfully. "What I will say is that there's nowhere you need to go from here. Just carry on. This isn't one of those things that needs a team of people to resolve."
Essdara laughs softly and shakes her head. "Nope, not that simple." She looks over at him. "Is it going to bother you, D'ven, if someone else chases her? Tries to show her that she's not ugly, that she is sweet and kind and desireable?" A slight smile, an edge of wistfulness to it. "Just out of curiosity, of course."
"No, of course not." D'ven replies, before taking a deep breath. "But if they hurt her, or make things worse, I'll break both of their legs. To begin with. Anything after that depends entirely on circumstances and how I'm feeling at the time."
Essdara nods softly. "That's all I need to know, D'ven. And trust me... If she gets hurt, you won't have to break legs. The person doing it, I am sure, would have already done for more damage to herself than you ever could. Hurting her more would surely just be a gift to her."
D'ven laughs, though there's little humor in it. "Somehow I get the sense we've moved out of the realms of 'just out of curiosity'." He points out idly. "But, you have your answer." There's a pause, and then a ghost of a smile appears. "I'm sorry, Dara. And I do hope you'll forgive me for this, but." There's a pause, and then his voice is pitched at a more normal volume that will doubtless carry to the ledge. "Honestly, you need to stop leaving your underwear here. It's not as if it even fits me."
Essdara rolls her eyes, looking over at him. "Low blow, D'ven. But you're not T'ral, so you've never had my udnerwear left behind." She stands up straight. "and no, it's out of that realm, but I have my answer. Thank you, D'ven." She shakes her head, moving towards the ledge before the bluerider can come looking. "And there's a lot I'll forgive you for. Making my father think things like that of me? Well, I wouldn't hold your breath. Clear skies, Wingsecond." And she's out to the ledge.
Once Dara has left, D'ven smirks somewhat to himself. "Well, I think we both got what we wanted." He murmurs as he pours himself a drink. "She was right about one thing, though. There is somewhere to go from here...I just need to decide where."