Log: TitheFest
Who: Ananta, C'mryn, E'dre, Eila, Sunniva, Milani, Tiriana, X'lar
When: It is a winter afternoon, 12:00 of day 7, month 12, turn 17 of Interval 10.
Where: Lake Shore, High Reaches Weyr
What: Bonfire, hot drinks, good food, dancing and snowballs. What better way to celebrate the last of the tithes coming in to fill up Stores?
High noon, early month 12 and it's getting downright cold as winter swings into full force. It's pleasant enough and clear today though, with a light coating of snow on the ground and high blue skies. The sun's warmth takes the edge off the omnipresent chill as does the massive fire that's crackling merrily away down by the lakeshore. Long tables have been set up all along the area with easy self-make skewer foods to toast over the flames. Tall kegs of cider also stand nearby and a couple of caverns-folk tend a pair of side fires where steaming kettles of warm drinks are being kept going, the heady scents of mulled cider and something rummy tinging the air. Music plays over in the Bowl where a dancing square of sorts has been cleared out in the snow. Poles have been set up too to hold long strings of paper glowholders, though these won't come into play until after dark.
Never one to miss a party, Tiriana is present, of course, from almost the start of things as she pauses to watch the dancing getting going. She turns down one brave young man's offer to join him with her most disdainful look, and while he looks equal parts hurt and relieved, she saunters on her way, toward the lake. There, her path takes her near the cider first, to get a glass, and then the fire to stand near while she drinks it.
Also present would be Sunniva, who is with a small clustering of candidates and fussing just a bit with the scarf around her neck. The chatting is interrupted when a few of the girls are pulled away to dance, with the Holdbred lass moving away to pre-empt any unwanted offers. That 'moving away' inexorably brings her in pursuit of something warm to drink and warm cider of the non-alcoholic persuasion is just perfect for that. Both hands fold around the mug, eyes emptily fixed on nothing in particular.
Flushed and laughing, Milani spins /off/ the 'dance square' and over to check on things by the fire. "We're good on cider?" she queries of one of the workers nearby and gets a reassuring nod. Spotting Tiriana and Sunniva, she takes a moment to get a mug of the spiked stuff then puts on her best party smile. "Hey there Tiriana! Sunniva! Having fun so far?"
With a sip of her drink, Tiriana glances around at the sound of her name, eyeing Milani and then Sunniva, the other girl she speaks too. Finally Tiriana herself shrugs, lowering her drink. "Just got her," she notes, with a brief look over the party: unimpressed so far, apparently. "What are you doing?"
"Oh, hello, Milani." Sunniva is thusly drawn from her reverie and half-turns, turning the mug around in her gloved hands to more evenly distribute the warmth. A glance about the goings on is then given, mouth pulling subtly as she observes, "It will be more fun tonight, I think." Another slight pause and then: "How are you? Enjoying yourself?"
"Oh you know, checking on everything and being a pain in the behind," Milani tells Tiriana cheerfully. "In between dancing." For Sunniva there's a warm smile and a little nod. "I'm good and I am so far and this stuff is really really good," says she as she sips from her mug.
X'lar seems to be in good enough spirits, walking through the crowd with a mug of his own, drinking from it every once in a while. For the moment, the Istan rider doesn't seem to be eating anything for the time being. Not yet, anyways. Given the looks he's giving those skewer foods, it might not be long until he starts.
"Oh, that is good. And it rather is, isn't it? Well, mine is -- I suspect yours might be a bit more fortified." That to Milani with a soft laugh. Sunniva takes a swig of her own, then casts a look toward the bonfire and the skewer-it-yourself foods -- which then brings X'lar into her line of sight. A hand is lifted to wave at him, a smile thrown his way.
From the far side of the lake, two shapes - one large, one small - might be seen picking their way across the snow; every so often, the taller of the two bends to help the shorter over a slippery patch, or clasp at a mitted hand to tug this way or that. Eventually, they near the festivities, and then young Nyck might be seen waddling forward with more speed (with a little difficulty for his swathing winter clothes) and Eila laughing faintly and jogging after him to catch up. The candidate casts a quick smile for those assembled, though keeping half an eye child shuffling here and there.
Milani hefts her mug upward, grinning at Sunniva. "Yep, I think it's rum? Not sure, but it's tasty, just a little kick." Sunni's wave to X'lar means she waves too a second later, though her foot is tapping along to the beat of the music. "Everything's all stored away too, looking good in there," she gives a little nod towards the caverns.
X'lar grins briefly toward Sunniva, waving back to the candidate. "Afternoon," X'lar calls out to her. Walking toward Sunniva, Xie offers to her: "Reaches has some pretty nice shindigs, huh?" He lifts another hand to greet Millie, grinning at Hayda's assistant. "Surprised you're not dancing non-stop, Milani," Xie replies. At Eila's arrival, Xie can only nod in greeting.
"Oh, that does sound lovely." Sunniva's cider earns a look of disappointment that passes a blink of an eye later. Shifting her weight slightly, she nods to Milani, "And that is good; there was an awful lot to be put away, wasn't there?" X'lar's words prompt a quick laugh, "As nice as possible given the climate. That," the bonfire and the stick-mounted foods are indicated, "is not something I have ever seen before."
"Yes, that was a big last train to come in. Still doing the reconciling, but all of the actual supplies are /in/," Millie says with a relieved look and a beam X'lar's way. "I'm just taking a little break, I was just out there," she says with big eyes his way. Eila's approach earns another wave and a beam. "Hi Eila! Hi Nycki! Ready to make snowmen this turn?"
Eila pats the young boy on the head as he totters off to flop down in the snow and roll snowballs, and she returns X'lar's nod with a quick one of her own, followed by another for Milani and Sunniva. The Nycki looks up at his name, and grins widely, patting at the snow in demonstration with a bright "Yep!" for the question. The candidate, with another glance his way, makes her way towards those barrels of cider, a delighted expression crossing her face. "Oh, this smells /marvellous/. Are we...?" And she peeks about, perhaps looking for a cup.
"Ista does skewers and spits all the time," X'lar remarks. "Definitely not new to me." He pauses and takes another sip from his mug, smiling briefly at Sunniva, asking her: "What, you haven't got used to the cold yet?" There's a brief wink at Sunniva before commenting, "I wouldn't be too worried about it, despite all the travelling I've done here and living here temporarily, I don't think I'll /ever/ get used to the cold." He shivers some before going on to say, "Malsaeth, on the other hand, loves it." To Millie, Xie nods quickly, asking the assistant headwoman, "Well, save one dance for me, for old time's sake, huh?" Eila's given another glance before grinning at the hope of drinking.
"I have never been to Ista," is probably not an unexpected revelation. "It does seem rather novel, though." An eyebrow wings upward briefly as Sunni looks at X'lar, then she smiles and shakes her head, "No, I have not, but in time, perhaps. Until then, I have plenty of scarves and things -- though," and here, her expression shifts a little, "they might not be necessary for long, depending on the whims of the dragons. The hatching is soon, isn't it?" Eila's nod is returned with one of her own, a cheerful, "Hello," being offered.
"You can have more than one, Xie," Milani answers laughingly and has a little bit more to drink. "Go ahead, Eila," Millie says with a nod about the spiked cider. "Just stick to one mug though. If you get plastered I'll have to revoke your next rest day or something," she says with a little wave of one hand. "Hatching can't be more than a month away at this point I'll bet."
At Milani's assurance, Eila moves to locate and fill a mug, with a grin and a chuckle tossed over her shoulder for the headwoman's assistant. "Just one," she says, agreeably, curling her fingers about the warmth of the cup and taking a quick sip. The girl sidles nearer to the conversation, perking interest for the mention of the hatching, and, tipping her head, asks, "A month, really?" Then, for Sunniva, curiously, "Where would you go back to, that's warmer?"
"Oh that's okay," X'lar replies back to Sunniva. "When I was a candidate, I had never been anywhere in my life. Just focused so much on being on the island I never really anticipated going anywhere else." There's a pause and then cheekily offers, "At that time, I even hated High Reaches. Hated any place that wasn't Ista." He snorts briefly before going on to say, "But that was roughly three turns ago. A few months less, probably." To Milani's answer, X'lar grins wide, saying, "/Great/." He nods back to Milani's comment regarding the eggs, remarking back to her: "If Fayre weren't so busy, I'd see about her coming here to bet. She's a natural at gambling." He shivers again, and hugs his jacket closer.
"I do not know." That is directed to Eila, Sunniva's tone being neutral -- if just a bit resigned. The rest of her cider is finished neatly and the rum-laced cider is given a long, thoughtful look. "And, yes, perhaps a month. Perhaps less. The dragonhealers ought to know." She glances sidelong to X'lar before actually making a move for the fortified cider, "Oh, that is how it was for me -- mostly. Now- well, I think that no matter how things go, I look forward to traveling more."
"I love going new places," Milani puts in energetically. "But I love here. Here's home. I like to visit lots of other parts of Pern, but I'll always come back here," she says with certainty and leans over to bump her shoulder lightly against X'lar's. "See we've come such a long way since we were younger," she teases him, since it just hasn't been that long since 'younger' was a reality for either of them. She grins as Nycki gets into the snow ball rolling. "Bet some of the kids'll set up a snowball battle over there in a bit," she notes, nodding towards the Bowl proper.
Stolen away by another overly talkative assistant headwoman, Tiriana feigns just enough politeness during their one-sided conversation to not utterly squash the girl when she curtly dismisses her. The goldrider, thus freed, turns back to return to her earlier group, only to find it's grown in the meantime. The new personalities inspire a refill of the spiked cider and a long drink of that before she returns to that conversation.
Burying her chin deep into the fur-lined trim of her jacket, Eila offers, her voice slightly muffled, "I'd be just as pleased to never have to see a new place again," though clearly it's going against the tide of the conversation and she shrugs slightly, "'ve travelled quite enough, thank you," and then she's eyeing Nycki suspiciously as the young boy hefts his well-rounded snowball and blinking innocently at the group, and she pokes just the tip of her tongue out at him: don't even think it, mister!
"Yeah, it wasn't until Malsaeth and I got together that I really saw what the world was like," X'lar admits. "Even now, with being a Timor wingrider, I almost always ask for conveyance duty when it is offered." He smiles briefly, fondly toward Milani as she bumps her shoulder against his, nudging her back. "Been a while since that day in the kitchen where we met, huh, Miliani?" Tiriana's spotted and X'lar grins wide at the sight of her. "Tiriana," X'lar calls out. "How're you?"
"What is your favourite place to visit?" is asked of X'lar. Then, lapsing into silence while the others talk, Sunniva nurses her drink with a faint smile and a periodic nod or acknowledging noise here and there where it seems appropriate. Of course, the potential for snowball-related antics from the boy is peripherally observed, the corner of her mouth twisting just a little with thought.
Her name again; Tiriana glances toward the voice that calls it, mouh pursing slightly to find X'lar there. "Afternoon," she tells him after a moment, though, stepping a little bit closer so it's not quite hollering across everyone. "I'm fine. You?" It's almost polite, if a little bored, and she gives her drink a long look before getting another sip.
"A little," Milani concedes to X'lar with a little wink. "Me I just wheedle people into taking me," she tacks on then smiles sympathetically Eila's way. "All that time on the road, right?"
Eila follows X'lar's words with bright interest, at least the bit about wingriding and such, and then she's on to dipping her head in greeting to Tiriana, tacking on a quiet, "ma'am," before turning slate-blue eyes on Milani and nodding her agreement. "For as long as I can remember. I've seen everything from here to - oh, Tillek, and down to Boll and back." And she doesn't sound terribly enthusiastic about it, either.
"Honestly?" X'lar asks Sunniva. "Here." He motions toward Milani and Tiriana, saying, "Reaches is... and likely always will be... my favourite place because of people like them." There's a brief smile and he summarizes more clearly: "Good people, good company." He takes a deep drink from his mug after that, letting out a sight. "Can't say I feel exactly the same way as I used to about the place, but I will always feel the same way about the people." There's another deeper drink from his mug, moving to get it filled again, but he looks back to Sunniva and smiles briefly. "But I'm an idealist," Xie replies, smiling faintly to Milani's wink in the process. "So what do I know, hm?" But then Tiriana's speaking again and X'lar casts another grin her way. "I've been good," he remarks to the junior weyrwoman. "How's Iovniath been?"
Eila's given a brief chuckle, telling her: "There're different ways of travelling, you know."
"Mm." That thoughtful noise is paired with a slight inclination of her head, Sunniva settling on mulling X'lar's words over with a long sip of cider. "Is there anything wrong with being an idealist?" she wonders rhetorically, eyes going from one person to another as they speak. Eila earns a look of mild sympathy, but no remark beyond a gentle, "Oh." Tiriana's approach is marked with a polite smile and accompanying nod.
"She's fine, of course. Iovniath," Tiriana answers X'lar, and rolls her eyes at his other comments, shooting knowing looks at the others around. "You like the place because of the people, but now you don't like the place except for the people--do you ever stop talking out of your ass and actually make sense?" she wants to know. Snorting disdainfully, she echoes under her breath, "Idealist."
"Boll's nice," Milani says, thinking through that list of locations. "I've been done there for drinks with my brothers. The ocean's pretty and it's nice and warm without being as sticky as Ista." Then Tiriana's talking and she blinks at the goldrider, nostrils pinching together slightly. "Actually I can see how that could go both ways, depends on the person, right?" Trying to kind of smooth things over.
"Yeah, but..." Eila lifts one hand helplessly to X'lar, and then with the other brings her mug of cider to her lips while she gathers her thoughts, "Once you've seen a place - you can't really see it again, not like the very first time you did." A nod for Milani, then, "... Can you?" The girl nips at her lips, tilting her head questioningly, and then shrugs. "I never did, anyway. Was always business." Sunniva's soft 'oh' is met with a wry sort of smile. "It's not so bad." Then she's looking back out after Nyck, who's now got a fair pile of snowballs at his feet.
"Depends on who you're talking to, Sunniva," X'lar answers her, smiling once more. He thumbs in the direction of Tiriana, "Like the junior weyrwoman here." He grins briefly at the goldrider, telling her: "What, you don't think I make sense?" He pauses, then finally admits more succinctly, "I've had my issues with some people here and my feelings toward the Weyr have changed, Tiriana, but I don't think I could ever stop coming here because I still have friends here like yourself and Milani." His brows arch, expectant as he asks the junior: "That make enough sense for you?" And then to Eila, he replies: "It's a different view from above."
The exchanges are observed with a surreptitious lifting of an eyebrow. "Ah, I see," is noted for X'lar's benefit. Sunniva takes a slight step away from the group, gaze drifting to the dancing before tracking back to Eila and then the young boy. "I suppose not," she settles on, then crouches, one hand holding her cider tightly, the other scooping up some of the snow. Innocently, of course.
"Both ways," repeats Tiriana, shooting a skeptical look Milani's way. To X'lar, however, she only rolls her eyes again expressively. "We're not friends," she informs him curtly. And that, apparently, is her cue to flee while she can maintain that, as she turns to swagger off with her nose in the air.
Eila presses her lips together, and then echoes thoughtfully, "... from above. I suppose it would be, wouldn't it." Less of a question than a stated agreement, and she's looking with a bit more interest at X'lar - or, perhaps, beyond him. Tiriana's departure is met with nothing but a little movement of her head, but behind her, Nycki's leaning out around a table leg and narrowing his eyes up at Sunniva, one hand creeping out to that hoarded pile of snowballs. Oh - innocently, of course.
Milani's mouth purses right up at Tiriana's continued attitude and her eyes harden uncharacteristically as the goldrider moves off with her nose up in the air. "She makes me want to throw things," she says conversationally once Tiriana's gone and has a long swallow from her mug. She then moves to hand it to X'lar. "I think snowballs sound like a /really/ good candidate for that. Would you mind holding that for me, Xie?"
X'lar chuckles softly to Tiriana, telling her as she leaves: "So says you, Tiriana, so says you." But then he moves to Milani, grinning at her as he replies back, "Tiriana doesn't want to say it, but she's totally hot for my body." The last remark has X'lar laughing aloud, shaking his head in amusement. Teasing, apparently. And soon he's taking Milani's mug, saying, "Of course."
Of course, Tiriana's departure is given no more attention than her arrival; a glance and naught much more. No, Sunniva's got something a little more interesting to do and that would be shaping a small snowball, feigning disinterest in whatever the boy is up to. Really, she's not paying any attention, except for a periodic glance. She straightens, tossing the ball lightly in her hands and looking to X'lar and Milani as she catches their conversation. "That must surely be why she is never happy," the Holdbred lass states to X'lar, "all of those dreadfully unrequited feelings and all." Serious? Joking? Her expression gives away nothing.
C'mryn's luck seems to be with him. The bronzerider's late, but he's passed Tiriana, and that just makes him grin. Lucky! His first order of business is to walk straight to the tables and find something hot to drink. The skewers are eyed but ignored for the moment. Cam pulls his gloves off, stuffs them in his pocket, and wraps his arms around a mug of cider.
Eila, oblivious to Nyck's sly scrambling for cover, ammunition tightly held to his chest as he ducks behind one of those large barrels of cider, wrinkles her nose just slightly. "She's not so bad, if you can ignore the frustrating bits." Blandly. Referring to Tiriana, of course, and then as though reminded by Milani's handing over of her cider the candidate takes a long draw at her own. X'lar's comment earns a breathy laugh, and then the girl's distracted with breathing out those little puffs of steam like a girl's first winter. Huff, huff, and Nycki pokes his head out and closes one eye and aaaiiims.
Milani puts her gloves on, ducks down to make up a snowball, but it's Sunniva she's eyeing thoughtfully, not Nycki. Cam's arrival is noted as she straightens and she beams his way. "Hey Cam! Pull up a mug, or a snowball, and I claim a dance from /you/ for later too. Can't have my dance card empty!" she declares cheerily then gives her snowball another pat. Tiriana? "Rather not think about her or I'll lose my temper." Huff.
X'lar nods sagely to Sunniva, replying back, "Oh yes. Unrequited feelings are just /dreadful/. The poor girl." Unlike Sunniva, however, X'lar says this with a wide grin on his face, giving away everything in his easy going demeanor. He moves to the booze again, filling both his and Milani's mugs. He takes another long drink from his mug once full. Leaning against one of the tables, Xie seems to have a good angle at seeing the potential for snowball-throwing. Cam's given a brief nod of acknowledgement.
The last bit of her cider is downed and the mug handed off -- with apologies and thanks, of course -- to someone passing by. "Such a terrible shame." Tsk, tsk. And she can't keep a straight face with that, a bright laugh escaping her. Having lost track of where the boy has gone, Sunniva half-turns to surreptitiously seek him out, both hands now dedicated to holding her snowball. Instead, she sees C'mryn and grins brightly at him, calling, "Hello, C'mryn!" Te greeting, of course, leaves her seemingly oblivious to both Milani's scheming /and/ Nyck's aiming.
He's already at the cider and, after giving a toast in Milani and X'lar's direction, takes a hearty swallow. "Dancing?" asks Cam, peering over to the makeshift dance floor. "Can people really dance out here in this cold? I might break something!" But it's cheerful enough. He keeps out of the warzone, though whether it's conscious or just a coincidence is unknown. "Sunniva," he greets with a grin and a nod.
X'lar chuckles softly in response to Cam's comments, seemingly quieting down for the most part as the snowball-plotting resumes. He's happy just to watch for the time being, one hand holding Milani's mug while drinking from his own.
Eila catches on to all that scheming and such a bit belatedly when Nycki, quite over-enthusiastically, finally makes the first move; quite the little tactician, aiming at those already armed - one snowball's lobbed Sunniva's way, and then, moments after, Milani's. The once-nanny, with a noise of horror, ducks right behind X'lar: thank you, human shield?
Milani lets out a little eek and darts the other way, circling around the bonfire to come back up and lob her snowball towards Nycki now that the first 'blow' has been cast. "And dancing is one of the best ways /to/ stay warm when it's chilly!" she calls from over where she is now and bends to put together a new weapon of mass snow showering.
"H-hey!" X'lar calls out to Eila, laughing suddenly as she moves right behind him. "Don't make me your shield!" He laughs again and looks around to the others, eyes narrowing. "But don't worry," he tells the short Reachian girl. "I'll save you." At hearing Milani's last comment, Xie offers in amusement, "One of, but not -the best- way to stay warm."
Well out of the way - and hiding near a group of important looking people - Cam just grins as the first snowballs start flying. "Staying the heck out of the snow is the best way I can think of," Cam muses aloud. Not that he's doing a very good job of it, having marched himself out to the lakeshore. Oh well. "Next best way would be to duck the snowballs."
Handy advice from C'mryn, just a pity she doesn't hear it until it's too late. The snowball goes *piff* on Sunni and, in return, the young woman utters a squeak and an 'oh' of surprise. She wings her snowball blindly in Nycki's direction, then promptly crouches to cobble together another snowball in a most unladylike fashion. She chimes in with an uncharacteristically wry, "Well, one of the best ways to stay warm in public, at the least. Dancing sounds /lovely/." Just, not now. Now, there is snow to be thrown.
The young candidate peeks about X'lar's shoulder, laughing, "Oh, big, strong bronzerider! My hero!" And then Eila's scrambling for her own snowball to lob in some undefined direction; it breaks on a table corner near Milani, instead, while underneath Nyck yelps indignantly and hurls another towards Sunniva for the glancing blow.
Oh so that's how it's going to be? Milani's next missile flies with good aim towards Eila's scrambling shape. "Throwing snowballs works up a good sweat too!" she tells Cam, eyes alight, cheeks flushed with the fun. For Xie there's just a brief /look/ and a laugh and then she's scooping more snow together to keep the battle for the bonfire engaged. Others nearby wise up and give the group a wide berth. Out in the Bowl where the square is, the music has changed to be very vivacious.
X'lar laughs aloud once more as he listens to Eila. "I swear," he tells the nanny-candidate with a grin. "Some people have the /wrong/ idea about bronze riders." And with that, he does actually look vaguely heroic as he moves to block the snowball thrown in Eila's direction. She might end up getting some of the snowball herself, but he's protected her from the brunt of it. He sets the mugs down and bends down to collect some snow of his own, balling it up. "I saw that, Millie!" And with that, swoosh goes his snowball in Milani's direction.
Pretending to look dignified, Cam remains where he stands even as his protective "important people" crowd moves off. Alone. Darn. But he keeps to the fringe, and slurps at his cider. "Careful, now," he warns. "I wouldn't want to call in reinforcement. Tausreth hasn't had a good snowball fight since we left Telgar." Thankfully, the bronze is nowhere to be seen. "Duck," is Cam's advice, for all snowball warriors.
Ah, but who to lob one at next? Sunniva just barely sidesteps the latest projectilve and, with a twist and a flare of skirts, her next snowball is aimed at Milani -- if for no other reason than she's there and a convenient target. But C'mryn is given a fleeting look, a curious one, and then she's hastening to get more snow. "How good at ducking are you, C'mryn?" is innocuously called.
Eila's laughing much too hard to even attempt to reprimand young Nycki, not that that's really her job any more, and then she's ducking as advised, managing to get under most - if not all - of Milani's projectile, the white powdering her hair and cheeks and a clump of it striking her collar and sinking in. "Oh, it's cold!" As though snow should be anything else. "What, so you're not herioc or anything? Well -" So then X'lar's the next target, friendly fire from behind!
There's a wary glance for Sunniva, and C'mryn's hands tighten on his cider mug as if it just might protect him from flying snowballs. "Very good," he tells her with a grin. "You've not met Tausreth, have you? If he's not flinging snow, he's flinging mud. Got good at ducking, yup." She's kept in his line of sight, however, just in case. And then a wince for his fellow bronzerider. "Ouch. Can't trust girls, mate."
Milani giggles madly and bends, scoops, bends and scoops again, putting together twin snowballs this time to return fire even as Sunni's snowball catches her across the rear-end and X'lar's whizzes over her head. Her two go flying back towards both of them with a loud: "Ha!"
As X'lar's hit at the back by the nanny-candidate's snowball, the bronze rider gasps at the impact and turns around with a look that means war. Or something. He can't help but grin, however, at Eila, the thrower of said snowball. "Oh, that's /it/," he replies, hands digging into the snow again. But rather than throw one back at Eila, he pivots and throws a fast one toward C'mryn, perhaps to surprise the other bronze rider. Wicked grin in place, Xie seems ready for the others now, fully in the game.
What could this be! E'dre seems to have walked right into a scene from childhood. A childhood that would've been if he wasn't reared in warmer climates. His grin is quick across his face as his hands stuff into his pockets. There's a small distance still between himself and the group that seem to be having fun throwing snow at each other.
If there was anything else she was going to say, the young woman's distracted by Milani's 'ha'. She's not so desperate that she'll dive, so Sunniva settles on trying to turn so the snowball impacts her shoulder -- which just sends snow into her hair and scarf. "Oh, you're /terrible/," is directed to no one in particular and, because C'mryn was the last person she was talking to and this is somehow his fault ... well, he gets a snowball flung his way. Milani's next, though, after she makes a mad dash to assemble a quick snowball that'll probably just fall apart before reaching her target.
Eila claps a hand to her mouth the instant X'lar turns, quite horrified, but then he's aiming for C'mryn and she perhaps she decides to help since her next quickly-compacted snowball is lofted the other bronzerider's way, too. And then there's one for Sunniva, just for good measure, since clearly the other candidate hasn't had enough. Nycki, under the table, perhaps forgotten, creeps on out, to look about for a new target: E'dre doesn't look snowy enough, so there's one more snowball added to the mix!
"Hey!" But Cam's true to his word, and ducks that flung snowball. It doesn't hurt that he's already a bit vertically challenged, and X'lar's snowball goes sailing harmlessly over head (If it should happen to strike someone else, well...). "Ha ha, thought you had-" but about that time, Cam's getting smacked in the face with a snowball from Sunniva, and can no longer talk for the ball of snow in his mouth. Cold!
X'lar gives Eila a brief wink. Apparently even the friendly fire sent toward him from the nanny-candidate wasn't enough for him to stop protecting her. The bronzerider mutters something under his breath as his snowball whizzes right past Cam, but laughs suddenly as Sunniva's hits him square. "Nice job, Sunniva!" he calls out, ducking quickly to grab at the snow again.
E'dre is a little too occupied watching everyone gathering snowballs and tossing them, and so distracted doesn't notice when he becomes a target. WHACK! A smattering of snow hits him in the side, causing him to swing around and attempt to eye the one that threw it. "Who did that!" he calls out, though he's quick to bend down and collect snow into a fist-sized ball. This is tossed in the air for weight and then he leans back on his heel, throwing his 'weapon' in the direction of Eila.
"Ah-ha!" Score! Laughing, the young woman starts to drop to get another handful of snow and- "Oh! You!" Sunniva blurts, shooting a laughing look to Eila when she's hit -- again! -- with a snowball. So much for her hair being done up all nicely. She flashes a lopsided grin to X'lar, "Well done!" Because if it weren't for his, hers might not have landed. And then more snow is gathered and, well, what's the best way to say hello to her searcher? A snowball, apparently. Heads up, E'dre!
"As much as I'd love to continue protecting you, Eila," X'lar remarks, grinning wide. "I've got to tend to Malsaeth who's being particularly... ornery at the moment." And with that, he drinks the rest of what was in his mug, and begins walking on, leaving the festivities behind. But not until he drops his hands quickly, forms a snowball and throws it high up in the air. Who knows who, if anyone, it will hit. "Good luck!" he calls out aloud before leaving the Tithefest.
A chunk of snow goes flying as Cam spits it out. There's a glare across for Sunniva, though the bronzerider can't keep the amusement from his eyes, and he wipes his hand over his mouth. "That was just /cruel/," he decides. "Just. Wrong." He very calmly sets his mug of (now cold) cider on the table and bends to collect a snowball. He takes his time, however, compacting the little ball with the care a Harper might take on a new masterpiece. It's just snow, though. Right?
E'dre before he has a chance to bend and retrieve more snow for his next target, he gets hit yet again by another snowball. "Oy!" He dusts the white fluff off of his jacket and bends quickly to gather a hastily made snowball. Jogging to get a little closer to Sunni, he then throws it right at her. Greetings in return!
Milani resurfaces from somewhere where she was hiding and lobs a pair of snowballs again in random directions. She straightens after to see where they go.
Ananta says, "You guys are nuts."
Ananta then flaps her arms and legs.
Ananta says, "If you want to get cold and wet, you mind as well commit to it, ya know? snow angels?"
"Well, you should have ducked!" is called back to C'mryn with another bright laugh, Sunniva tossing a wink his way in return for that glare. However, his artful crafting of a new snowball goes unnoticed, as her attention flicks hastily back to E'dre. And, oh. Right. Incoming snowball! Arms come up to protect her face and then she has to take a moment to dust herself off and reconsider her snow-dusted state. And her hair? She's pulling the clips out to let it fall freely, then pulls her scarf up to cover. No snowballs from her; she's just preparing for another barrage. Over here, where it's ... okay, not safe, but she can hope.
Eila gasps as E'dre's projectile strikes home on her shoulder, and makes a fish-mouthed gape and points rather indignantly down at Nycki. It wasn't /me/! Pitifully, she wails, "... X'lar!" And now her shield's gone, too, and she spares little time in watching him depart before she's fending off one of Milani's errant missiles and packing one of her own and aiming it right back for the headwoman's assistant and scampering for cover elsewhere.
A pause, as Cam considers his snowball. "Mhm," he answers Sunniva with an arched eyebrow. A glance up and, as she's adjusting her scarf, preparing for more, he'll go ahead and lob it at her head. "Duck," he calls out helpfully. Or not. He grins, and decides, "Yeah, but, snowangles just back the snow down your back. I didn't /ask/ to be attacked! Women!" But it's said with a grin, and C'mryn ducks again to scoop up more snow. This time, as a snowball goes flying over his head, it really is just luck that it misses him.
Milani takes Eila's snowball across the shoulder and lets out a whoop, makes up another snowball and dives fully back into the fray as the afternoon starts to creep onward. She's after Eila again, tracking her around spots where cover might be sought. A group of riders and cavernsworkers get some skewers and head over to the fire to cook up their food, eyeing the shenanigans with smiles or raised brows as the case may be.
Ananta says, "Your arms tired?"
"Wha-?" She doesn't finish, turning toward the source of the advice at just the right time to twist out of the way. Insecure footing, however, sends her to the ground with a squawk and a puff of snow. "Oh! X'lar did it first!" as if that somehow makes it 'okay'. In either case, Sunniva's out for now, nose all crinkled as she gives herself a once over.
Cover? Here? Behind Sunniva, maybe, but that's quick discarded as the other girl takes a tumble and Eila dives onward to under a table - Nycki's own shelter from the whizzing snowballs, and with a high laugh the young boy pitches his last snowball her way; which she catches, and aims carefully up from under the table towards Milani. Take /that/ for following me around! Hah!
Meep. Millie gets that snowball in the face as she ducks to try to peg one under the table after Eila and Nycki. A moment of startlement and she sits down on the ground to peel snow out of her face, laughing as the flakes and clumps are pulled away. "Oh that was good," she tells Eila, grinning.
"Doesn't matter," calls C'mryn with a grin. "You're the one that got me!" And the other bronzerider has retreated, too. "My arms? Tired? Never!" Cam tosses his next snowball towards the crowd at large, though he's not really paying attention to it. Nope. He's intent on that downed Sunniva, and takes up a little jog before launching himself at her. Flying bronzeriders!
"It is not my fault you ducked the wrong one!" Oh dear. That would very much be the look on Sunni's face when she looks up and sees C'mryn flinging himself at her. Of course, that look rapidly gives way to something more determined as she starts to frantically backpedal, if only to kick a fair bit of snow up at him. Get to her feet? Not with the lack of purchase they're finding in the slush and snow; all she can hope for is a reasonable distraction.
Eila blinks at unexpectedly-close, snow-spattered Milani, and then grins broadly, clapping her gloved hands together - as much to rid them of that sticking snow as to indicate her sheer delight. "It was, wasn't it? There's nothing like a good snowball fight." And then she's propping herself up with her extended arms, panting slightly, and craning her neck about to see what becomes of the flying bronzerider. "Look out, Sunniva!" She offers, a bit ineffectively.
Cam? Distracted? Ha! With a wicked grin, he reaches out and yanks that scarf back from Sunniva's head and, with his other hand, scoops up a handful of snow and drops it on her head. With a "Aha!" sort of triumphant laugh, he smooshes the snow into her hair, grinning gleefully. "Justice is served!" Or something.
Milani flops down as well, elbows perched in the snow, chin on hands, watching the melee. "Go Cam!" she calls out. "Oooof, Sunni, you're going to need a /lot/ of dancing," she says laughingly. The scent of cooking food briefly fills the area as those people roasting skewers finish up and step away a little to enjoy the portable meal.
Ananta leans over to Milani, a little warily. "So, tithes were good this time?"
"Oh! You!" Because anything else would require not sputtering, which is precisely what she's doing now; her hair! How dreadful. With a savagely devious look, Sunniva returns the favour; a handful of snow is taken up in a gloved hand and aimed to be shoved into Cam's face with a playful, "Take /that/!" To Milani, who is heard and not seen: "And a change of clothes!" And, after a sniff of the air, "... oh, and something to eat, too."
The young once-nanny sighs her happy agreement with /that/ statement, lifting her chin to angle her gaze - well, nose, really - towards the sizzling skewers, and slaps at the snow left on her pants and arms before scrabbling out from under the table, Nyck shortly after. The boy has a quick laugh for C'mryn's action, and then Sunniva's reaction, and then he's off, waddling in his snowsuit for the warmth of the inner caverns - and maybe a warm mug of hot chocolate, too. Eila, meanwhile, retrieves her cider - cooling, now, but it's her only one so she's not going to let it go to waste!
And Cam gets more snow in the face. Isn't that how this started for him? But he takes it like a man, and just arches an eyebrow (a snowy one) up at Sunniva. "Truce," he decides, holding out a hand. One glance at it, and he rubs it briskly on his jacket before offering it again. "Food, you say? Good idea. Dancing? Also good. Clothes...?" But Cam just grins.
Up to her feet goes Milani, grinning at Eila. "Time to eat, yep," and then she's pausing, looking over at Ananta. "Oh well, it's looking mostly okay so far," she says carefully. "Some things ... maybe a little thin, but we won't be going cold or hungry, that's for sure!" She gestures to the tables. "Help yourself!" Then she's busily sweeping snow off skirts and coat.
"You are /terrible/," Sunniva laughs with just a bit of pinkness blooming on her cheeks and nose, while dusting off her own hand in order to better accept C'mryn's. Whether she needs the help to get up or not doesn't matter; she'll take it either way. "But, yes, a truce is acceptable-" her smile quirks, just a little "-for now, at least." Her head tilts, quizzically. "Food? Dancing?" A glance to her soaked clothes. "Or ought I change first?" She leaves the choice up to him.
"I happen to be very good," Cam tells Sunniva, grinning cheekily at her. With a bit of effort, he hauls himself to his feet, dusts himself off and offers her his hand again. "And that depends. How comfortable are you in wet clothes? Bit cold," and he's being nice now, it seems. "I'd say, go change. Less you catch cold." Him? He's going to glance over towards those tables and sniff towards the food. "Mm. Can't promise there'll be food left for ya, though."
Ananta says, "Well, it's good to be fed and warm. It doesn't always take much to be comfortable. Speaking of resources, I need to find a job. I only have a few pennies to my name. Have you heard of any jobs? Does anybody keep these places clean?"
"Yay," Contented (if a bit wet-looking) Eila sips her cider, drifting towards that blazing bonfire as indicated by Milani. Skewers and such are all inspected, closely, before she picks at one, twirling the stick between her fingers and blowing a bit uselessly at the steaming meat before she pops a piece off and into her mouth. And she waves it, cheerily, towards Sunniva, mumbling, "It's /really/ good." If a bit hot? She puffs her cheeks out around that mouthful and inhales, sharply.
"He /is/ good," Milani calls from across the way at Cam's claims to skill on the dance floor. "And there's plenty of skewers to roast up," the assistant headwoman continues, hands propping on hips. Ananta gets a quick look and Millie blinks. "Oh well, that's the sort of thing that maybe you could speak to the Headwoman about, but not right now, hm?" Her smile though is friendly. "Have a bite, maybe catch a dance," she says gaily.
"So you say, but we shall see." Sunniva is unconvinced, but amused nonetheless. The bronzer's hand is taken and she pulls herself up, only to promptly start dusting herself off. At his assessment of the food, she chews a little on her lower lip, then glances to Eila, "Is it? Oh. Well," and here, she looks back to C'mryn, "I could get food first, then change. Dancing in wet skirts is /dreadful/."
"Is that a challenge?" wonders Cam with a grin and arched eyebrow for Sunniva. "In that case go. Go change. I'd rather not get slapped in the leg with a wet skirt. Maybe I'll save you a skewer." Maybe. As soon as she's up, he's inching for that table of food, eying it like a hungry dragon.
Hungry dragon Cam earns a lofted brow as he moves by and Milani's head shakes a little. "Ruled by the stomach," she teases him then gives Sunniva a little wave. "All okay over there?" for the wet skirts.
"Make it two," and she demonstrates, lifting two fingers with a conspiratorial edge to her smile (which, surely, must be directly the result of her fortified cider), "and you might get two chances to prove yourself on the dance floor." And, on that note, Sunniva turns and hikes up her soggy skirts, heading back to the barracks as quickly as she can manage without risking another tumble in the snow. Cast back to Milani, "I am fine! I shall be right back, I promise."
Sunniva gets a lifted hand as she dashes off, and C'mryn quickly reaches out to save her two skewers. Or maybe they're for himself. No... he sets them aside on another plate and pushes it out of the way. For Sunniva. As for himself, he picks one up and heads to the fire, grinning at Milani. "Ruled by my stomach is better than being ruled by another bit of anatomy. I could be one of *those* kinds of bronzeriders." The bad kind.
Milani snags a skewer for herself while she's at it and ambles along after C'mryn. "What's so wrong with /that/ kind of bronzerider?" she asks. "I mean, nothing wrong with the kind that's /not/ like that either, but isn't variety the spice of life or something?" The skewer is held out over flame as more fuel is added to the pyre making the flames dance higher. Afternoon is starting to slip away now too, the sun sliding down towards the horizon and casting long shadows across the Bowl.
"Maybe I should be more specific about *that* kind of bronzerider, hm? Think we've got different ideas," says Cam with a touch more seriousness. But he's still grinning, and as his skewer of food (Fooood!) slowly cooks, his attention focuses upon it and the fire. "What do you think," he wonders, "Two? Three? How many's too many before I'm too full to move?" Like she would know.
Milani just smirks at C'mryn. "Maaaaybe," and she turns her skewer around to make sure the roasting is even. The skewers are eyed, then him. "Hmmm. Well you're not a big guy, but you could be like me, all energy. So I'll say three or /four/."
Long minutes pass between Sunniva's departure and subsequent return, but it's enough time to let her change into something dry and do something more with her hair than keep it bound with a scarf -- namely, to pull it back into a loose tangle of a bun. Now, to tromp through the snow /without/ getting all wet and then to find C'mryn and the others.
As Sunni returns, Milani and Cam dig into those skewers, but there's that plate on offer for the Fortian with two of same to cook up. "Cam saved these for you!" the headwoman's assistant says brightly. Meal done, there's some coming and going and Millie waves as Eila slips away. "These are /good/," she says about the skewers, looking very happy with her meal. "Can't wait to hit the dancing again though."
"Oh! Wonderful. Thank you," Sunniva exclaims appreciatively, taking her two and proceeding to cook them quite thoroughly. For once, she actually /eats/ (and not just this or that; all of it) -- "They are delightful!" -- and, while picking at the last bits on the last stick, is quick to suggest with a look to the assistant headwoman, "Oh, you ought to go first, Milani."
"Hit the spot, didn't it?" Milani answers about the food, then tips a look over at the dance floor. "Are you sure you don't mind? I'll only keep him for one, then go see if Xie can be dragged back off the Sands," she tells Sunniva with a grin.
"Oh, we shall have to do that again," Sunniva grins, then nods emphatically, motioning playfully with both hands for Milani to go. "I need to warm up some more, yet, otherwise it will be no good," she explains with a smile. Then, a lightly teasing: "And it might not hurt him any to warm up, either."
More laughter as Milani heads off to warm Cam up for Sunni on the dance floor. They're gone the space of one song and come back laughing still, for Sunniva to have a turn. "All right then, have fun you two, I'm off to find X'lar!" the headwoman's assistant says brightly as the sun goes down and the glows are put into the strings of lights around the Bowl and lake, making it a fairyland of bobbing lanterns as the day dies and the harper music swells to new heights and the bonfire roars on.
When: It is a winter afternoon, 12:00 of day 7, month 12, turn 17 of Interval 10.
Where: Lake Shore, High Reaches Weyr
What: Bonfire, hot drinks, good food, dancing and snowballs. What better way to celebrate the last of the tithes coming in to fill up Stores?
High noon, early month 12 and it's getting downright cold as winter swings into full force. It's pleasant enough and clear today though, with a light coating of snow on the ground and high blue skies. The sun's warmth takes the edge off the omnipresent chill as does the massive fire that's crackling merrily away down by the lakeshore. Long tables have been set up all along the area with easy self-make skewer foods to toast over the flames. Tall kegs of cider also stand nearby and a couple of caverns-folk tend a pair of side fires where steaming kettles of warm drinks are being kept going, the heady scents of mulled cider and something rummy tinging the air. Music plays over in the Bowl where a dancing square of sorts has been cleared out in the snow. Poles have been set up too to hold long strings of paper glowholders, though these won't come into play until after dark.
Never one to miss a party, Tiriana is present, of course, from almost the start of things as she pauses to watch the dancing getting going. She turns down one brave young man's offer to join him with her most disdainful look, and while he looks equal parts hurt and relieved, she saunters on her way, toward the lake. There, her path takes her near the cider first, to get a glass, and then the fire to stand near while she drinks it.
Also present would be Sunniva, who is with a small clustering of candidates and fussing just a bit with the scarf around her neck. The chatting is interrupted when a few of the girls are pulled away to dance, with the Holdbred lass moving away to pre-empt any unwanted offers. That 'moving away' inexorably brings her in pursuit of something warm to drink and warm cider of the non-alcoholic persuasion is just perfect for that. Both hands fold around the mug, eyes emptily fixed on nothing in particular.
Flushed and laughing, Milani spins /off/ the 'dance square' and over to check on things by the fire. "We're good on cider?" she queries of one of the workers nearby and gets a reassuring nod. Spotting Tiriana and Sunniva, she takes a moment to get a mug of the spiked stuff then puts on her best party smile. "Hey there Tiriana! Sunniva! Having fun so far?"
With a sip of her drink, Tiriana glances around at the sound of her name, eyeing Milani and then Sunniva, the other girl she speaks too. Finally Tiriana herself shrugs, lowering her drink. "Just got her," she notes, with a brief look over the party: unimpressed so far, apparently. "What are you doing?"
"Oh, hello, Milani." Sunniva is thusly drawn from her reverie and half-turns, turning the mug around in her gloved hands to more evenly distribute the warmth. A glance about the goings on is then given, mouth pulling subtly as she observes, "It will be more fun tonight, I think." Another slight pause and then: "How are you? Enjoying yourself?"
"Oh you know, checking on everything and being a pain in the behind," Milani tells Tiriana cheerfully. "In between dancing." For Sunniva there's a warm smile and a little nod. "I'm good and I am so far and this stuff is really really good," says she as she sips from her mug.
X'lar seems to be in good enough spirits, walking through the crowd with a mug of his own, drinking from it every once in a while. For the moment, the Istan rider doesn't seem to be eating anything for the time being. Not yet, anyways. Given the looks he's giving those skewer foods, it might not be long until he starts.
"Oh, that is good. And it rather is, isn't it? Well, mine is -- I suspect yours might be a bit more fortified." That to Milani with a soft laugh. Sunniva takes a swig of her own, then casts a look toward the bonfire and the skewer-it-yourself foods -- which then brings X'lar into her line of sight. A hand is lifted to wave at him, a smile thrown his way.
From the far side of the lake, two shapes - one large, one small - might be seen picking their way across the snow; every so often, the taller of the two bends to help the shorter over a slippery patch, or clasp at a mitted hand to tug this way or that. Eventually, they near the festivities, and then young Nyck might be seen waddling forward with more speed (with a little difficulty for his swathing winter clothes) and Eila laughing faintly and jogging after him to catch up. The candidate casts a quick smile for those assembled, though keeping half an eye child shuffling here and there.
Milani hefts her mug upward, grinning at Sunniva. "Yep, I think it's rum? Not sure, but it's tasty, just a little kick." Sunni's wave to X'lar means she waves too a second later, though her foot is tapping along to the beat of the music. "Everything's all stored away too, looking good in there," she gives a little nod towards the caverns.
X'lar grins briefly toward Sunniva, waving back to the candidate. "Afternoon," X'lar calls out to her. Walking toward Sunniva, Xie offers to her: "Reaches has some pretty nice shindigs, huh?" He lifts another hand to greet Millie, grinning at Hayda's assistant. "Surprised you're not dancing non-stop, Milani," Xie replies. At Eila's arrival, Xie can only nod in greeting.
"Oh, that does sound lovely." Sunniva's cider earns a look of disappointment that passes a blink of an eye later. Shifting her weight slightly, she nods to Milani, "And that is good; there was an awful lot to be put away, wasn't there?" X'lar's words prompt a quick laugh, "As nice as possible given the climate. That," the bonfire and the stick-mounted foods are indicated, "is not something I have ever seen before."
"Yes, that was a big last train to come in. Still doing the reconciling, but all of the actual supplies are /in/," Millie says with a relieved look and a beam X'lar's way. "I'm just taking a little break, I was just out there," she says with big eyes his way. Eila's approach earns another wave and a beam. "Hi Eila! Hi Nycki! Ready to make snowmen this turn?"
Eila pats the young boy on the head as he totters off to flop down in the snow and roll snowballs, and she returns X'lar's nod with a quick one of her own, followed by another for Milani and Sunniva. The Nycki looks up at his name, and grins widely, patting at the snow in demonstration with a bright "Yep!" for the question. The candidate, with another glance his way, makes her way towards those barrels of cider, a delighted expression crossing her face. "Oh, this smells /marvellous/. Are we...?" And she peeks about, perhaps looking for a cup.
"Ista does skewers and spits all the time," X'lar remarks. "Definitely not new to me." He pauses and takes another sip from his mug, smiling briefly at Sunniva, asking her: "What, you haven't got used to the cold yet?" There's a brief wink at Sunniva before commenting, "I wouldn't be too worried about it, despite all the travelling I've done here and living here temporarily, I don't think I'll /ever/ get used to the cold." He shivers some before going on to say, "Malsaeth, on the other hand, loves it." To Millie, Xie nods quickly, asking the assistant headwoman, "Well, save one dance for me, for old time's sake, huh?" Eila's given another glance before grinning at the hope of drinking.
"I have never been to Ista," is probably not an unexpected revelation. "It does seem rather novel, though." An eyebrow wings upward briefly as Sunni looks at X'lar, then she smiles and shakes her head, "No, I have not, but in time, perhaps. Until then, I have plenty of scarves and things -- though," and here, her expression shifts a little, "they might not be necessary for long, depending on the whims of the dragons. The hatching is soon, isn't it?" Eila's nod is returned with one of her own, a cheerful, "Hello," being offered.
"You can have more than one, Xie," Milani answers laughingly and has a little bit more to drink. "Go ahead, Eila," Millie says with a nod about the spiked cider. "Just stick to one mug though. If you get plastered I'll have to revoke your next rest day or something," she says with a little wave of one hand. "Hatching can't be more than a month away at this point I'll bet."
At Milani's assurance, Eila moves to locate and fill a mug, with a grin and a chuckle tossed over her shoulder for the headwoman's assistant. "Just one," she says, agreeably, curling her fingers about the warmth of the cup and taking a quick sip. The girl sidles nearer to the conversation, perking interest for the mention of the hatching, and, tipping her head, asks, "A month, really?" Then, for Sunniva, curiously, "Where would you go back to, that's warmer?"
"Oh that's okay," X'lar replies back to Sunniva. "When I was a candidate, I had never been anywhere in my life. Just focused so much on being on the island I never really anticipated going anywhere else." There's a pause and then cheekily offers, "At that time, I even hated High Reaches. Hated any place that wasn't Ista." He snorts briefly before going on to say, "But that was roughly three turns ago. A few months less, probably." To Milani's answer, X'lar grins wide, saying, "/Great/." He nods back to Milani's comment regarding the eggs, remarking back to her: "If Fayre weren't so busy, I'd see about her coming here to bet. She's a natural at gambling." He shivers again, and hugs his jacket closer.
"I do not know." That is directed to Eila, Sunniva's tone being neutral -- if just a bit resigned. The rest of her cider is finished neatly and the rum-laced cider is given a long, thoughtful look. "And, yes, perhaps a month. Perhaps less. The dragonhealers ought to know." She glances sidelong to X'lar before actually making a move for the fortified cider, "Oh, that is how it was for me -- mostly. Now- well, I think that no matter how things go, I look forward to traveling more."
"I love going new places," Milani puts in energetically. "But I love here. Here's home. I like to visit lots of other parts of Pern, but I'll always come back here," she says with certainty and leans over to bump her shoulder lightly against X'lar's. "See we've come such a long way since we were younger," she teases him, since it just hasn't been that long since 'younger' was a reality for either of them. She grins as Nycki gets into the snow ball rolling. "Bet some of the kids'll set up a snowball battle over there in a bit," she notes, nodding towards the Bowl proper.
Stolen away by another overly talkative assistant headwoman, Tiriana feigns just enough politeness during their one-sided conversation to not utterly squash the girl when she curtly dismisses her. The goldrider, thus freed, turns back to return to her earlier group, only to find it's grown in the meantime. The new personalities inspire a refill of the spiked cider and a long drink of that before she returns to that conversation.
Burying her chin deep into the fur-lined trim of her jacket, Eila offers, her voice slightly muffled, "I'd be just as pleased to never have to see a new place again," though clearly it's going against the tide of the conversation and she shrugs slightly, "'ve travelled quite enough, thank you," and then she's eyeing Nycki suspiciously as the young boy hefts his well-rounded snowball and blinking innocently at the group, and she pokes just the tip of her tongue out at him: don't even think it, mister!
"Yeah, it wasn't until Malsaeth and I got together that I really saw what the world was like," X'lar admits. "Even now, with being a Timor wingrider, I almost always ask for conveyance duty when it is offered." He smiles briefly, fondly toward Milani as she bumps her shoulder against his, nudging her back. "Been a while since that day in the kitchen where we met, huh, Miliani?" Tiriana's spotted and X'lar grins wide at the sight of her. "Tiriana," X'lar calls out. "How're you?"
"What is your favourite place to visit?" is asked of X'lar. Then, lapsing into silence while the others talk, Sunniva nurses her drink with a faint smile and a periodic nod or acknowledging noise here and there where it seems appropriate. Of course, the potential for snowball-related antics from the boy is peripherally observed, the corner of her mouth twisting just a little with thought.
Her name again; Tiriana glances toward the voice that calls it, mouh pursing slightly to find X'lar there. "Afternoon," she tells him after a moment, though, stepping a little bit closer so it's not quite hollering across everyone. "I'm fine. You?" It's almost polite, if a little bored, and she gives her drink a long look before getting another sip.
"A little," Milani concedes to X'lar with a little wink. "Me I just wheedle people into taking me," she tacks on then smiles sympathetically Eila's way. "All that time on the road, right?"
Eila follows X'lar's words with bright interest, at least the bit about wingriding and such, and then she's on to dipping her head in greeting to Tiriana, tacking on a quiet, "ma'am," before turning slate-blue eyes on Milani and nodding her agreement. "For as long as I can remember. I've seen everything from here to - oh, Tillek, and down to Boll and back." And she doesn't sound terribly enthusiastic about it, either.
"Honestly?" X'lar asks Sunniva. "Here." He motions toward Milani and Tiriana, saying, "Reaches is... and likely always will be... my favourite place because of people like them." There's a brief smile and he summarizes more clearly: "Good people, good company." He takes a deep drink from his mug after that, letting out a sight. "Can't say I feel exactly the same way as I used to about the place, but I will always feel the same way about the people." There's another deeper drink from his mug, moving to get it filled again, but he looks back to Sunniva and smiles briefly. "But I'm an idealist," Xie replies, smiling faintly to Milani's wink in the process. "So what do I know, hm?" But then Tiriana's speaking again and X'lar casts another grin her way. "I've been good," he remarks to the junior weyrwoman. "How's Iovniath been?"
Eila's given a brief chuckle, telling her: "There're different ways of travelling, you know."
"Mm." That thoughtful noise is paired with a slight inclination of her head, Sunniva settling on mulling X'lar's words over with a long sip of cider. "Is there anything wrong with being an idealist?" she wonders rhetorically, eyes going from one person to another as they speak. Eila earns a look of mild sympathy, but no remark beyond a gentle, "Oh." Tiriana's approach is marked with a polite smile and accompanying nod.
"She's fine, of course. Iovniath," Tiriana answers X'lar, and rolls her eyes at his other comments, shooting knowing looks at the others around. "You like the place because of the people, but now you don't like the place except for the people--do you ever stop talking out of your ass and actually make sense?" she wants to know. Snorting disdainfully, she echoes under her breath, "Idealist."
"Boll's nice," Milani says, thinking through that list of locations. "I've been done there for drinks with my brothers. The ocean's pretty and it's nice and warm without being as sticky as Ista." Then Tiriana's talking and she blinks at the goldrider, nostrils pinching together slightly. "Actually I can see how that could go both ways, depends on the person, right?" Trying to kind of smooth things over.
"Yeah, but..." Eila lifts one hand helplessly to X'lar, and then with the other brings her mug of cider to her lips while she gathers her thoughts, "Once you've seen a place - you can't really see it again, not like the very first time you did." A nod for Milani, then, "... Can you?" The girl nips at her lips, tilting her head questioningly, and then shrugs. "I never did, anyway. Was always business." Sunniva's soft 'oh' is met with a wry sort of smile. "It's not so bad." Then she's looking back out after Nyck, who's now got a fair pile of snowballs at his feet.
"Depends on who you're talking to, Sunniva," X'lar answers her, smiling once more. He thumbs in the direction of Tiriana, "Like the junior weyrwoman here." He grins briefly at the goldrider, telling her: "What, you don't think I make sense?" He pauses, then finally admits more succinctly, "I've had my issues with some people here and my feelings toward the Weyr have changed, Tiriana, but I don't think I could ever stop coming here because I still have friends here like yourself and Milani." His brows arch, expectant as he asks the junior: "That make enough sense for you?" And then to Eila, he replies: "It's a different view from above."
The exchanges are observed with a surreptitious lifting of an eyebrow. "Ah, I see," is noted for X'lar's benefit. Sunniva takes a slight step away from the group, gaze drifting to the dancing before tracking back to Eila and then the young boy. "I suppose not," she settles on, then crouches, one hand holding her cider tightly, the other scooping up some of the snow. Innocently, of course.
"Both ways," repeats Tiriana, shooting a skeptical look Milani's way. To X'lar, however, she only rolls her eyes again expressively. "We're not friends," she informs him curtly. And that, apparently, is her cue to flee while she can maintain that, as she turns to swagger off with her nose in the air.
Eila presses her lips together, and then echoes thoughtfully, "... from above. I suppose it would be, wouldn't it." Less of a question than a stated agreement, and she's looking with a bit more interest at X'lar - or, perhaps, beyond him. Tiriana's departure is met with nothing but a little movement of her head, but behind her, Nycki's leaning out around a table leg and narrowing his eyes up at Sunniva, one hand creeping out to that hoarded pile of snowballs. Oh - innocently, of course.
Milani's mouth purses right up at Tiriana's continued attitude and her eyes harden uncharacteristically as the goldrider moves off with her nose up in the air. "She makes me want to throw things," she says conversationally once Tiriana's gone and has a long swallow from her mug. She then moves to hand it to X'lar. "I think snowballs sound like a /really/ good candidate for that. Would you mind holding that for me, Xie?"
X'lar chuckles softly to Tiriana, telling her as she leaves: "So says you, Tiriana, so says you." But then he moves to Milani, grinning at her as he replies back, "Tiriana doesn't want to say it, but she's totally hot for my body." The last remark has X'lar laughing aloud, shaking his head in amusement. Teasing, apparently. And soon he's taking Milani's mug, saying, "Of course."
Of course, Tiriana's departure is given no more attention than her arrival; a glance and naught much more. No, Sunniva's got something a little more interesting to do and that would be shaping a small snowball, feigning disinterest in whatever the boy is up to. Really, she's not paying any attention, except for a periodic glance. She straightens, tossing the ball lightly in her hands and looking to X'lar and Milani as she catches their conversation. "That must surely be why she is never happy," the Holdbred lass states to X'lar, "all of those dreadfully unrequited feelings and all." Serious? Joking? Her expression gives away nothing.
C'mryn's luck seems to be with him. The bronzerider's late, but he's passed Tiriana, and that just makes him grin. Lucky! His first order of business is to walk straight to the tables and find something hot to drink. The skewers are eyed but ignored for the moment. Cam pulls his gloves off, stuffs them in his pocket, and wraps his arms around a mug of cider.
Eila, oblivious to Nyck's sly scrambling for cover, ammunition tightly held to his chest as he ducks behind one of those large barrels of cider, wrinkles her nose just slightly. "She's not so bad, if you can ignore the frustrating bits." Blandly. Referring to Tiriana, of course, and then as though reminded by Milani's handing over of her cider the candidate takes a long draw at her own. X'lar's comment earns a breathy laugh, and then the girl's distracted with breathing out those little puffs of steam like a girl's first winter. Huff, huff, and Nycki pokes his head out and closes one eye and aaaiiims.
Milani puts her gloves on, ducks down to make up a snowball, but it's Sunniva she's eyeing thoughtfully, not Nycki. Cam's arrival is noted as she straightens and she beams his way. "Hey Cam! Pull up a mug, or a snowball, and I claim a dance from /you/ for later too. Can't have my dance card empty!" she declares cheerily then gives her snowball another pat. Tiriana? "Rather not think about her or I'll lose my temper." Huff.
X'lar nods sagely to Sunniva, replying back, "Oh yes. Unrequited feelings are just /dreadful/. The poor girl." Unlike Sunniva, however, X'lar says this with a wide grin on his face, giving away everything in his easy going demeanor. He moves to the booze again, filling both his and Milani's mugs. He takes another long drink from his mug once full. Leaning against one of the tables, Xie seems to have a good angle at seeing the potential for snowball-throwing. Cam's given a brief nod of acknowledgement.
The last bit of her cider is downed and the mug handed off -- with apologies and thanks, of course -- to someone passing by. "Such a terrible shame." Tsk, tsk. And she can't keep a straight face with that, a bright laugh escaping her. Having lost track of where the boy has gone, Sunniva half-turns to surreptitiously seek him out, both hands now dedicated to holding her snowball. Instead, she sees C'mryn and grins brightly at him, calling, "Hello, C'mryn!" Te greeting, of course, leaves her seemingly oblivious to both Milani's scheming /and/ Nyck's aiming.
He's already at the cider and, after giving a toast in Milani and X'lar's direction, takes a hearty swallow. "Dancing?" asks Cam, peering over to the makeshift dance floor. "Can people really dance out here in this cold? I might break something!" But it's cheerful enough. He keeps out of the warzone, though whether it's conscious or just a coincidence is unknown. "Sunniva," he greets with a grin and a nod.
X'lar chuckles softly in response to Cam's comments, seemingly quieting down for the most part as the snowball-plotting resumes. He's happy just to watch for the time being, one hand holding Milani's mug while drinking from his own.
Eila catches on to all that scheming and such a bit belatedly when Nycki, quite over-enthusiastically, finally makes the first move; quite the little tactician, aiming at those already armed - one snowball's lobbed Sunniva's way, and then, moments after, Milani's. The once-nanny, with a noise of horror, ducks right behind X'lar: thank you, human shield?
Milani lets out a little eek and darts the other way, circling around the bonfire to come back up and lob her snowball towards Nycki now that the first 'blow' has been cast. "And dancing is one of the best ways /to/ stay warm when it's chilly!" she calls from over where she is now and bends to put together a new weapon of mass snow showering.
"H-hey!" X'lar calls out to Eila, laughing suddenly as she moves right behind him. "Don't make me your shield!" He laughs again and looks around to the others, eyes narrowing. "But don't worry," he tells the short Reachian girl. "I'll save you." At hearing Milani's last comment, Xie offers in amusement, "One of, but not -the best- way to stay warm."
Well out of the way - and hiding near a group of important looking people - Cam just grins as the first snowballs start flying. "Staying the heck out of the snow is the best way I can think of," Cam muses aloud. Not that he's doing a very good job of it, having marched himself out to the lakeshore. Oh well. "Next best way would be to duck the snowballs."
Handy advice from C'mryn, just a pity she doesn't hear it until it's too late. The snowball goes *piff* on Sunni and, in return, the young woman utters a squeak and an 'oh' of surprise. She wings her snowball blindly in Nycki's direction, then promptly crouches to cobble together another snowball in a most unladylike fashion. She chimes in with an uncharacteristically wry, "Well, one of the best ways to stay warm in public, at the least. Dancing sounds /lovely/." Just, not now. Now, there is snow to be thrown.
The young candidate peeks about X'lar's shoulder, laughing, "Oh, big, strong bronzerider! My hero!" And then Eila's scrambling for her own snowball to lob in some undefined direction; it breaks on a table corner near Milani, instead, while underneath Nyck yelps indignantly and hurls another towards Sunniva for the glancing blow.
Oh so that's how it's going to be? Milani's next missile flies with good aim towards Eila's scrambling shape. "Throwing snowballs works up a good sweat too!" she tells Cam, eyes alight, cheeks flushed with the fun. For Xie there's just a brief /look/ and a laugh and then she's scooping more snow together to keep the battle for the bonfire engaged. Others nearby wise up and give the group a wide berth. Out in the Bowl where the square is, the music has changed to be very vivacious.
X'lar laughs aloud once more as he listens to Eila. "I swear," he tells the nanny-candidate with a grin. "Some people have the /wrong/ idea about bronze riders." And with that, he does actually look vaguely heroic as he moves to block the snowball thrown in Eila's direction. She might end up getting some of the snowball herself, but he's protected her from the brunt of it. He sets the mugs down and bends down to collect some snow of his own, balling it up. "I saw that, Millie!" And with that, swoosh goes his snowball in Milani's direction.
Pretending to look dignified, Cam remains where he stands even as his protective "important people" crowd moves off. Alone. Darn. But he keeps to the fringe, and slurps at his cider. "Careful, now," he warns. "I wouldn't want to call in reinforcement. Tausreth hasn't had a good snowball fight since we left Telgar." Thankfully, the bronze is nowhere to be seen. "Duck," is Cam's advice, for all snowball warriors.
Ah, but who to lob one at next? Sunniva just barely sidesteps the latest projectilve and, with a twist and a flare of skirts, her next snowball is aimed at Milani -- if for no other reason than she's there and a convenient target. But C'mryn is given a fleeting look, a curious one, and then she's hastening to get more snow. "How good at ducking are you, C'mryn?" is innocuously called.
Eila's laughing much too hard to even attempt to reprimand young Nycki, not that that's really her job any more, and then she's ducking as advised, managing to get under most - if not all - of Milani's projectile, the white powdering her hair and cheeks and a clump of it striking her collar and sinking in. "Oh, it's cold!" As though snow should be anything else. "What, so you're not herioc or anything? Well -" So then X'lar's the next target, friendly fire from behind!
There's a wary glance for Sunniva, and C'mryn's hands tighten on his cider mug as if it just might protect him from flying snowballs. "Very good," he tells her with a grin. "You've not met Tausreth, have you? If he's not flinging snow, he's flinging mud. Got good at ducking, yup." She's kept in his line of sight, however, just in case. And then a wince for his fellow bronzerider. "Ouch. Can't trust girls, mate."
Milani giggles madly and bends, scoops, bends and scoops again, putting together twin snowballs this time to return fire even as Sunni's snowball catches her across the rear-end and X'lar's whizzes over her head. Her two go flying back towards both of them with a loud: "Ha!"
As X'lar's hit at the back by the nanny-candidate's snowball, the bronze rider gasps at the impact and turns around with a look that means war. Or something. He can't help but grin, however, at Eila, the thrower of said snowball. "Oh, that's /it/," he replies, hands digging into the snow again. But rather than throw one back at Eila, he pivots and throws a fast one toward C'mryn, perhaps to surprise the other bronze rider. Wicked grin in place, Xie seems ready for the others now, fully in the game.
What could this be! E'dre seems to have walked right into a scene from childhood. A childhood that would've been if he wasn't reared in warmer climates. His grin is quick across his face as his hands stuff into his pockets. There's a small distance still between himself and the group that seem to be having fun throwing snow at each other.
If there was anything else she was going to say, the young woman's distracted by Milani's 'ha'. She's not so desperate that she'll dive, so Sunniva settles on trying to turn so the snowball impacts her shoulder -- which just sends snow into her hair and scarf. "Oh, you're /terrible/," is directed to no one in particular and, because C'mryn was the last person she was talking to and this is somehow his fault ... well, he gets a snowball flung his way. Milani's next, though, after she makes a mad dash to assemble a quick snowball that'll probably just fall apart before reaching her target.
Eila claps a hand to her mouth the instant X'lar turns, quite horrified, but then he's aiming for C'mryn and she perhaps she decides to help since her next quickly-compacted snowball is lofted the other bronzerider's way, too. And then there's one for Sunniva, just for good measure, since clearly the other candidate hasn't had enough. Nycki, under the table, perhaps forgotten, creeps on out, to look about for a new target: E'dre doesn't look snowy enough, so there's one more snowball added to the mix!
"Hey!" But Cam's true to his word, and ducks that flung snowball. It doesn't hurt that he's already a bit vertically challenged, and X'lar's snowball goes sailing harmlessly over head (If it should happen to strike someone else, well...). "Ha ha, thought you had-" but about that time, Cam's getting smacked in the face with a snowball from Sunniva, and can no longer talk for the ball of snow in his mouth. Cold!
X'lar gives Eila a brief wink. Apparently even the friendly fire sent toward him from the nanny-candidate wasn't enough for him to stop protecting her. The bronzerider mutters something under his breath as his snowball whizzes right past Cam, but laughs suddenly as Sunniva's hits him square. "Nice job, Sunniva!" he calls out, ducking quickly to grab at the snow again.
E'dre is a little too occupied watching everyone gathering snowballs and tossing them, and so distracted doesn't notice when he becomes a target. WHACK! A smattering of snow hits him in the side, causing him to swing around and attempt to eye the one that threw it. "Who did that!" he calls out, though he's quick to bend down and collect snow into a fist-sized ball. This is tossed in the air for weight and then he leans back on his heel, throwing his 'weapon' in the direction of Eila.
"Ah-ha!" Score! Laughing, the young woman starts to drop to get another handful of snow and- "Oh! You!" Sunniva blurts, shooting a laughing look to Eila when she's hit -- again! -- with a snowball. So much for her hair being done up all nicely. She flashes a lopsided grin to X'lar, "Well done!" Because if it weren't for his, hers might not have landed. And then more snow is gathered and, well, what's the best way to say hello to her searcher? A snowball, apparently. Heads up, E'dre!
"As much as I'd love to continue protecting you, Eila," X'lar remarks, grinning wide. "I've got to tend to Malsaeth who's being particularly... ornery at the moment." And with that, he drinks the rest of what was in his mug, and begins walking on, leaving the festivities behind. But not until he drops his hands quickly, forms a snowball and throws it high up in the air. Who knows who, if anyone, it will hit. "Good luck!" he calls out aloud before leaving the Tithefest.
A chunk of snow goes flying as Cam spits it out. There's a glare across for Sunniva, though the bronzerider can't keep the amusement from his eyes, and he wipes his hand over his mouth. "That was just /cruel/," he decides. "Just. Wrong." He very calmly sets his mug of (now cold) cider on the table and bends to collect a snowball. He takes his time, however, compacting the little ball with the care a Harper might take on a new masterpiece. It's just snow, though. Right?
E'dre before he has a chance to bend and retrieve more snow for his next target, he gets hit yet again by another snowball. "Oy!" He dusts the white fluff off of his jacket and bends quickly to gather a hastily made snowball. Jogging to get a little closer to Sunni, he then throws it right at her. Greetings in return!
Milani resurfaces from somewhere where she was hiding and lobs a pair of snowballs again in random directions. She straightens after to see where they go.
Ananta says, "You guys are nuts."
Ananta then flaps her arms and legs.
Ananta says, "If you want to get cold and wet, you mind as well commit to it, ya know? snow angels?"
"Well, you should have ducked!" is called back to C'mryn with another bright laugh, Sunniva tossing a wink his way in return for that glare. However, his artful crafting of a new snowball goes unnoticed, as her attention flicks hastily back to E'dre. And, oh. Right. Incoming snowball! Arms come up to protect her face and then she has to take a moment to dust herself off and reconsider her snow-dusted state. And her hair? She's pulling the clips out to let it fall freely, then pulls her scarf up to cover. No snowballs from her; she's just preparing for another barrage. Over here, where it's ... okay, not safe, but she can hope.
Eila gasps as E'dre's projectile strikes home on her shoulder, and makes a fish-mouthed gape and points rather indignantly down at Nycki. It wasn't /me/! Pitifully, she wails, "... X'lar!" And now her shield's gone, too, and she spares little time in watching him depart before she's fending off one of Milani's errant missiles and packing one of her own and aiming it right back for the headwoman's assistant and scampering for cover elsewhere.
A pause, as Cam considers his snowball. "Mhm," he answers Sunniva with an arched eyebrow. A glance up and, as she's adjusting her scarf, preparing for more, he'll go ahead and lob it at her head. "Duck," he calls out helpfully. Or not. He grins, and decides, "Yeah, but, snowangles just back the snow down your back. I didn't /ask/ to be attacked! Women!" But it's said with a grin, and C'mryn ducks again to scoop up more snow. This time, as a snowball goes flying over his head, it really is just luck that it misses him.
Milani takes Eila's snowball across the shoulder and lets out a whoop, makes up another snowball and dives fully back into the fray as the afternoon starts to creep onward. She's after Eila again, tracking her around spots where cover might be sought. A group of riders and cavernsworkers get some skewers and head over to the fire to cook up their food, eyeing the shenanigans with smiles or raised brows as the case may be.
Ananta says, "Your arms tired?"
"Wha-?" She doesn't finish, turning toward the source of the advice at just the right time to twist out of the way. Insecure footing, however, sends her to the ground with a squawk and a puff of snow. "Oh! X'lar did it first!" as if that somehow makes it 'okay'. In either case, Sunniva's out for now, nose all crinkled as she gives herself a once over.
Cover? Here? Behind Sunniva, maybe, but that's quick discarded as the other girl takes a tumble and Eila dives onward to under a table - Nycki's own shelter from the whizzing snowballs, and with a high laugh the young boy pitches his last snowball her way; which she catches, and aims carefully up from under the table towards Milani. Take /that/ for following me around! Hah!
Meep. Millie gets that snowball in the face as she ducks to try to peg one under the table after Eila and Nycki. A moment of startlement and she sits down on the ground to peel snow out of her face, laughing as the flakes and clumps are pulled away. "Oh that was good," she tells Eila, grinning.
"Doesn't matter," calls C'mryn with a grin. "You're the one that got me!" And the other bronzerider has retreated, too. "My arms? Tired? Never!" Cam tosses his next snowball towards the crowd at large, though he's not really paying attention to it. Nope. He's intent on that downed Sunniva, and takes up a little jog before launching himself at her. Flying bronzeriders!
"It is not my fault you ducked the wrong one!" Oh dear. That would very much be the look on Sunni's face when she looks up and sees C'mryn flinging himself at her. Of course, that look rapidly gives way to something more determined as she starts to frantically backpedal, if only to kick a fair bit of snow up at him. Get to her feet? Not with the lack of purchase they're finding in the slush and snow; all she can hope for is a reasonable distraction.
Eila blinks at unexpectedly-close, snow-spattered Milani, and then grins broadly, clapping her gloved hands together - as much to rid them of that sticking snow as to indicate her sheer delight. "It was, wasn't it? There's nothing like a good snowball fight." And then she's propping herself up with her extended arms, panting slightly, and craning her neck about to see what becomes of the flying bronzerider. "Look out, Sunniva!" She offers, a bit ineffectively.
Cam? Distracted? Ha! With a wicked grin, he reaches out and yanks that scarf back from Sunniva's head and, with his other hand, scoops up a handful of snow and drops it on her head. With a "Aha!" sort of triumphant laugh, he smooshes the snow into her hair, grinning gleefully. "Justice is served!" Or something.
Milani flops down as well, elbows perched in the snow, chin on hands, watching the melee. "Go Cam!" she calls out. "Oooof, Sunni, you're going to need a /lot/ of dancing," she says laughingly. The scent of cooking food briefly fills the area as those people roasting skewers finish up and step away a little to enjoy the portable meal.
Ananta leans over to Milani, a little warily. "So, tithes were good this time?"
"Oh! You!" Because anything else would require not sputtering, which is precisely what she's doing now; her hair! How dreadful. With a savagely devious look, Sunniva returns the favour; a handful of snow is taken up in a gloved hand and aimed to be shoved into Cam's face with a playful, "Take /that/!" To Milani, who is heard and not seen: "And a change of clothes!" And, after a sniff of the air, "... oh, and something to eat, too."
The young once-nanny sighs her happy agreement with /that/ statement, lifting her chin to angle her gaze - well, nose, really - towards the sizzling skewers, and slaps at the snow left on her pants and arms before scrabbling out from under the table, Nyck shortly after. The boy has a quick laugh for C'mryn's action, and then Sunniva's reaction, and then he's off, waddling in his snowsuit for the warmth of the inner caverns - and maybe a warm mug of hot chocolate, too. Eila, meanwhile, retrieves her cider - cooling, now, but it's her only one so she's not going to let it go to waste!
And Cam gets more snow in the face. Isn't that how this started for him? But he takes it like a man, and just arches an eyebrow (a snowy one) up at Sunniva. "Truce," he decides, holding out a hand. One glance at it, and he rubs it briskly on his jacket before offering it again. "Food, you say? Good idea. Dancing? Also good. Clothes...?" But Cam just grins.
Up to her feet goes Milani, grinning at Eila. "Time to eat, yep," and then she's pausing, looking over at Ananta. "Oh well, it's looking mostly okay so far," she says carefully. "Some things ... maybe a little thin, but we won't be going cold or hungry, that's for sure!" She gestures to the tables. "Help yourself!" Then she's busily sweeping snow off skirts and coat.
"You are /terrible/," Sunniva laughs with just a bit of pinkness blooming on her cheeks and nose, while dusting off her own hand in order to better accept C'mryn's. Whether she needs the help to get up or not doesn't matter; she'll take it either way. "But, yes, a truce is acceptable-" her smile quirks, just a little "-for now, at least." Her head tilts, quizzically. "Food? Dancing?" A glance to her soaked clothes. "Or ought I change first?" She leaves the choice up to him.
"I happen to be very good," Cam tells Sunniva, grinning cheekily at her. With a bit of effort, he hauls himself to his feet, dusts himself off and offers her his hand again. "And that depends. How comfortable are you in wet clothes? Bit cold," and he's being nice now, it seems. "I'd say, go change. Less you catch cold." Him? He's going to glance over towards those tables and sniff towards the food. "Mm. Can't promise there'll be food left for ya, though."
Ananta says, "Well, it's good to be fed and warm. It doesn't always take much to be comfortable. Speaking of resources, I need to find a job. I only have a few pennies to my name. Have you heard of any jobs? Does anybody keep these places clean?"
"Yay," Contented (if a bit wet-looking) Eila sips her cider, drifting towards that blazing bonfire as indicated by Milani. Skewers and such are all inspected, closely, before she picks at one, twirling the stick between her fingers and blowing a bit uselessly at the steaming meat before she pops a piece off and into her mouth. And she waves it, cheerily, towards Sunniva, mumbling, "It's /really/ good." If a bit hot? She puffs her cheeks out around that mouthful and inhales, sharply.
"He /is/ good," Milani calls from across the way at Cam's claims to skill on the dance floor. "And there's plenty of skewers to roast up," the assistant headwoman continues, hands propping on hips. Ananta gets a quick look and Millie blinks. "Oh well, that's the sort of thing that maybe you could speak to the Headwoman about, but not right now, hm?" Her smile though is friendly. "Have a bite, maybe catch a dance," she says gaily.
"So you say, but we shall see." Sunniva is unconvinced, but amused nonetheless. The bronzer's hand is taken and she pulls herself up, only to promptly start dusting herself off. At his assessment of the food, she chews a little on her lower lip, then glances to Eila, "Is it? Oh. Well," and here, she looks back to C'mryn, "I could get food first, then change. Dancing in wet skirts is /dreadful/."
"Is that a challenge?" wonders Cam with a grin and arched eyebrow for Sunniva. "In that case go. Go change. I'd rather not get slapped in the leg with a wet skirt. Maybe I'll save you a skewer." Maybe. As soon as she's up, he's inching for that table of food, eying it like a hungry dragon.
Hungry dragon Cam earns a lofted brow as he moves by and Milani's head shakes a little. "Ruled by the stomach," she teases him then gives Sunniva a little wave. "All okay over there?" for the wet skirts.
"Make it two," and she demonstrates, lifting two fingers with a conspiratorial edge to her smile (which, surely, must be directly the result of her fortified cider), "and you might get two chances to prove yourself on the dance floor." And, on that note, Sunniva turns and hikes up her soggy skirts, heading back to the barracks as quickly as she can manage without risking another tumble in the snow. Cast back to Milani, "I am fine! I shall be right back, I promise."
Sunniva gets a lifted hand as she dashes off, and C'mryn quickly reaches out to save her two skewers. Or maybe they're for himself. No... he sets them aside on another plate and pushes it out of the way. For Sunniva. As for himself, he picks one up and heads to the fire, grinning at Milani. "Ruled by my stomach is better than being ruled by another bit of anatomy. I could be one of *those* kinds of bronzeriders." The bad kind.
Milani snags a skewer for herself while she's at it and ambles along after C'mryn. "What's so wrong with /that/ kind of bronzerider?" she asks. "I mean, nothing wrong with the kind that's /not/ like that either, but isn't variety the spice of life or something?" The skewer is held out over flame as more fuel is added to the pyre making the flames dance higher. Afternoon is starting to slip away now too, the sun sliding down towards the horizon and casting long shadows across the Bowl.
"Maybe I should be more specific about *that* kind of bronzerider, hm? Think we've got different ideas," says Cam with a touch more seriousness. But he's still grinning, and as his skewer of food (Fooood!) slowly cooks, his attention focuses upon it and the fire. "What do you think," he wonders, "Two? Three? How many's too many before I'm too full to move?" Like she would know.
Milani just smirks at C'mryn. "Maaaaybe," and she turns her skewer around to make sure the roasting is even. The skewers are eyed, then him. "Hmmm. Well you're not a big guy, but you could be like me, all energy. So I'll say three or /four/."
Long minutes pass between Sunniva's departure and subsequent return, but it's enough time to let her change into something dry and do something more with her hair than keep it bound with a scarf -- namely, to pull it back into a loose tangle of a bun. Now, to tromp through the snow /without/ getting all wet and then to find C'mryn and the others.
As Sunni returns, Milani and Cam dig into those skewers, but there's that plate on offer for the Fortian with two of same to cook up. "Cam saved these for you!" the headwoman's assistant says brightly. Meal done, there's some coming and going and Millie waves as Eila slips away. "These are /good/," she says about the skewers, looking very happy with her meal. "Can't wait to hit the dancing again though."
"Oh! Wonderful. Thank you," Sunniva exclaims appreciatively, taking her two and proceeding to cook them quite thoroughly. For once, she actually /eats/ (and not just this or that; all of it) -- "They are delightful!" -- and, while picking at the last bits on the last stick, is quick to suggest with a look to the assistant headwoman, "Oh, you ought to go first, Milani."
"Hit the spot, didn't it?" Milani answers about the food, then tips a look over at the dance floor. "Are you sure you don't mind? I'll only keep him for one, then go see if Xie can be dragged back off the Sands," she tells Sunniva with a grin.
"Oh, we shall have to do that again," Sunniva grins, then nods emphatically, motioning playfully with both hands for Milani to go. "I need to warm up some more, yet, otherwise it will be no good," she explains with a smile. Then, a lightly teasing: "And it might not hurt him any to warm up, either."
More laughter as Milani heads off to warm Cam up for Sunni on the dance floor. They're gone the space of one song and come back laughing still, for Sunniva to have a turn. "All right then, have fun you two, I'm off to find X'lar!" the headwoman's assistant says brightly as the sun goes down and the glows are put into the strings of lights around the Bowl and lake, making it a fairyland of bobbing lanterns as the day dies and the harper music swells to new heights and the bonfire roars on.