A Time to Relax

Eastern Weyr - Grotto
The stone to the back of the caverns gives way into a twisting labrynth of stone tunnels that seem to lead into the very depth of the lava formed weyr. Deep within the bowels of the weyr, where the steaming hot water pools into a network of pipings and ducts, a private pool can be found. It takes persistance and a lot of work to squeeze through, but it has the advantages of privacy. The large pool of steaming hot water bubbles with a slightly copper-sulfer smell of the geothermal vent near by. Apparently someone has been here and has hidden several stacks of towels in one of the nooks so that they can dry off before sneaking back out.


Kharzan has taken the chance to escape the hectic bustle of everyone in the caverns and in the barracks as people start coming back from various duties. He's over at the little pool, sitting on the edge with his feet dangling in. He's got on a pair of plain brown swim trunks and seems to be working himself into getting into the hot water.

Zorya is one of those who's recently returned from the day's duties. She too is looking to escape the bustle as she makes her way through the narrow winding tunnels that lead to these pools. Glancing up from the path her feet are on as she comes into the small cavern that holds the pool she catches sight of the boy already there. "Oh…" she starts softly, "um.. Ah didn't realize…" The rest of the thought clear, but unspoken.

Kharzan starts a little and looks up. Upon seeing it's Zorya, he relaxes a little. "S'okay." he murmurs and then looks back past here. "No one else um coming, is there?" he asks after a moment. Course, not seeing anyone else he relaxes more. "It's uh quieter back here. Not umm used to so many really. You?"

Zorya shakes her head at the first question, though she does send a glance back to double check herself. "No, Ah don't think so." she replies, stepping lightly across the room towards the pool. To the second she nods slightly in agreement of the quiet. "Yes and no." Pause. "Ya sure ya don't mind..?"

Kharzan shakes his head "No, umm I don't mind." he murmurs as he gestures to a spot along the edge or in as she chooses. "I find it uh relaxinf here and not umm prone to being quite so crowded as the well umm other caverns."

Zorya nods a bit, looking and finding a towel which is then spread at the edge of the pool opposite Kharzan. "Its nice ta have quieter for a bit." she agrees, settling on the towel then which seems to have been set in place for the purpose of attempting to keep her dress from getting too wet in the process of sitting. Her feet for the time being are rest on the edge, and out of the water, as she wraps her arms about her knees.

Kharzan watches the bubbles coming up in the water for a little bit, before glancing over at Zorya and seeing her sitting with her knees up "Umm, everything okay?" he asks quietly as he studies her a moment and then looks back down into the water, not wanting to put her under scrutiny or anything like that.

"Ah- yeah.." Zorya replies with a bit of hesitation, bobbing her head in a bit of a nod as she rests her chin on her knees. Blue eyes stare off at the water just beyond her toes. Its fairly obvious however, that something is on her mind.

Kharzan is silent for a bit as he looks her way again. He shifts a little and then reaches back to scratch at the nape of his neck. "So, anything umm interesting happen today?" he asks after a moment of trying to figure out what he could say to draw her out.

Zorya shakes her head, gaze still fixed on her toes. "Nah really." Pause. "Ah.. Ah was assigned ta Terra Wing, had records taday." Records. Nice safe records. They don't require going anywhere, or riding dragons or anything of the sort.

Kharzan ahhs a little and nods. "Well, records ain't bad I guess. My hands well they'll cramp up after writing awhile and all, but I don't have that bad of a hand. I'm uh, just a little slow at it." he shrugs a little "I was with Flame." he notes quietly "There was an accident and all, someone was umm run over by a wagon. He uh lost a leg, but seems he'll be umm okay. Least was umm better than going umm back up." he looks up towards the ceiling and well the sky outside.

Zorya blinks, her gaze lifting for the moment to her companion as he mentions the accident, "Was he..?" she starts, and then its answered and a look of horror flashes across her features. "That's terrible." "Oh… well at least he's still doin' a'right…" she replies having the story completed. But then there's the mention of 'up' and the girl visibly shakes, a quick glance sent towards the sky before dropping back to the pool as her arms tighten about her knees.

Kharzan catches her tensing up. "You didn't umm like going up there? Did you?" he asks quietly and frowns a little down at the water"I thought I'd well I thought I'd find it really umm wonderful and all. Didn't expect to uh, be sick." He looks back at Zorya "Umm, you uh, don't have to go back I uh, don't think."

Zorya shakes her head. Didn't like might be a bit of an understatement. "That…" Well she's not even sure how to describe it herself. Just the thought finds her trying to get her breathing under control. "Ah'm.. not.. goin'." she manages in reply.

Kharzan is silent for awhile as he listens to what little she says. He frowns and then purses his lips. He opens his mouth to say something and just finds himself closing again. And then "Umm, well. Then you don't." he states matter-of-factly. "I mean, even if umm you Impress, you just don't well umm join Deluge, or you just uh do the sea rescue part and all. I mean, that one umm blue rider, K'nan. She umm, she doesn't go up there and all."

Zorya nods slowly, lifting her gaze - though not her head, to the boy as he offers his suggestions. "Ah… Ah guess ya right." she agrees. There are ways around it, but still! There's another long pause as she bites her lip. "Ah didn even know there was a…," she swallows hard, "Up there." It sounds almost ominous, foreboding as she says it, her voice ever quiet.

Kharzan hmms a little "Well, I kinda knew. Just never really well thought about it." he murmurs as he looks up again "I mean, I've learned about it in the craft and all." he shrugs a little. "Things are umm no uh different I guess, I mean you're still here and it's still there and we're still where we're at and all."

"Ah didn…" He might have, but she didn't. And the realization up there of just where they were… It was terrifying. "Ah mean stars an' stuff sure, but… that there's something up there…" That -she- would ever be up there. The thought just never had occurred to Zorya. She shivers despite the rather warm conditions of their current surroundings.

Kharzan tilts his head a little and looks thoughtful "Yeah, I suppose not know and then seeing and all." he hmms somewhat "YEah, that'd be kinda spooky and all I guess." He pause a little and looks over at Zorya "You gonna, umm be okay? I mean umm you're uh not afraid we'll umm fall from the sky are you?"

Zorya nods slowly, just a small movement as her chin still rests on her knees. "Ah think s-" And then he has to keep going after the question and put ideas in her head. "Ya don't think we're gonna do ya?" she asks in turn, blue eyes wide as she looks back at him. That's the last thing she needs to be thinking about right now. See, blissfully unaware is good in Zorya's world.

Kharzan mrrs a little, okay so that didn't work so well "No, I mean no way we could umm fall I mean there's umm no where to fall too?" He shifts a bit and then scratches his head "Uh, just umm think about uh, trees." Yeah, that sounds good "I mean, the trees aren't going umm anywhere and well and feet. YOur umm feet on the ground, umm feel it uh under you and all and how umm your feet keep going back to it."

The stuttering, though quite normal for Kharzan, isn't helping his case just now. "Trees?" Zorya sounds unsure, but she nods a bit trying to understand where he's going with the thought. "Right…" the girl agrees, her feet shifting a bit on the edge of the pool as he mentions them. "Ah think Ah'm gonna keep 'em there much as Ah can." she informs. Yes, feet on ground is good.

Kharzan scratches his head some. "Water, umm look at the water. I mean, it moves, but it uh stays here on the ground. As uh fluid as it is, it doesn't leave." he purses his lips and then smiles "If you fall, the ground here will catch you? I'll try to catch you too. I mean we're friends and all, and friends umm keep each other uh, grounded."

A small bit of an awkward smile begins to creep its way to the corners of Zorya's lips and she nods. One foot is slid forward a bit to toe the water as its mentioned. "Ah suppose…" though there's a bit of confusion in her one as she replies. And then a small nod, "Thanks Kharzan." Pause. "Ah think… well umm.. its jus' gonna take a little…" Or alot. Either way it's one of those things that might just take a bit of time to come to grips with.

Kharzan gives a nod "I can umm see it takin' some getting used to." he murmurs and then smiles and takes a moment to get his breath and then slowly and clearly he says "I think you can do it." a little nod of his head "You're strong." Then with a grin, he flicks his fingers through the water, sending a few droplets her way. Look, they fall back into the water. Gravity check, if you drop it, it wall fall.

"Umm, yeah, thanks.. Ah umm think." Zorya replies, seemingly having picked up, at least for the moment, the boy's habit of saying 'um'. The smile creeps futher onto her face as he flicks the water at her and she manages a bit of a giggle. Yes, gravity. Yet another one of those things that she never stopped to wonder about before. "Ah'm.. Ah'm sorry iffen Ah caused problems with that an all…" With that trip.

Kharzan shakes his head a little, but he smiles "I uh didn't see any umm problems." he murmurs, course he was rather indisposed and getting sick and feeling very out of sorts. "I wasn't umm myself and all. I'm umm glad to have the ground though and thinks where they uh belong." he shrugs a little "It's good to be umm home."

Zorya nods her agreement. Though she didn't catch his indisposal having had her own issues at the time. "Same here." she returns, "Ah like havin' my feet on the ground." It just feels right! "Ah'm ready ta be home. Ah miss my cousins an all." Reaching forward she moves to slip her sandals from her feet and set them beside her.

Kharzan tilts his head a little "Tell me umm, about your cousins?" he asks with a smile. After all, family should be a good way to get your mind off of other things. right?"

"There's an aweful lot.." Zorya notes, unsure if he'd really like to hear about them. "Mosta 'ems back at Shipton. They all fairly nice. Got a few at the weyrs too. They're.." What's the word she's looking for? "..flightborn. From my Uncle L'ton. There's bout 25 a 'em." she seems uncertain of the number, but its inconsequence at the moment. "Cept for Zipalla. She ain't from a flight. She's the closes since Ah left ta Ista."

Kharzan blinks a little "So many?" he asks with a touch of wonder in his voice. He then nods a little as it sinks in. Flightborn "Ahh, yeah, umm a number in Weyrs tend to be umm that. Nothin' wrong, I mean kinda nice after all I mean so many know how to well, between and all to umm prevent that sorta thing." Then there's a frown "Wait umm, you umm said there's 25 from your umm Uncle alone?"

Zorya nods. "Yeah…" There something wrong with that? She pauses for a moment. "He's got the most though, like Ah said flights an' all. Mosta 'em is pretty little yet though. Mine's a big family…" Big dear? Try huge, but then when its what you know…

Kharzan just ohs a little "Wow." he murmurs and shakes his head some "Though I suppose someday I'll have umm neices and nephews and all. I'm almost surprised I don't really, I mean my brothers they do seem to well umm like girls. Dunno if they're really liked much, and well my sister doesn't either." he hmms a little "Whats it well like and all to have so much umm family?"

Zorya shrugs a little. "Ah dunno mosta L'ton's. Jus heard of 'em ya know. But sometimes its nice. Have lotsa people ta talk ta an do thin's with. But otha times it ain't so nice cause ya always got someone there. Makes it hard ta have time alone." She sighs softly, blue eyes trailing back to the water as she points the toes of one foot and draws a little swirl across the surface of the pool. "Ah got a couple a them too, nieces an nephews."

Kharzan hmms a little as he listens "Yeah, I could umm see that. I like my umm solitude as well. TOo many just gets umm too overwhelming." he murmurs "Though, I think it'd be umm kinda neat if there were some to um well relate with and all."

Zorya nods. "Yeah, well like Ah said, it was nice sometimes," she agrees, "But it ain't like Ah wan'ed ta be alone all the time. Jus'.. well my family.. mosta 'em wasn't too keen on me wantin' ta be a harper. So Ah kinda made somethin's up on my own when Ah could get sometime myself, ya know."

Kharzan tilts his head and looks curiousy "Why uh, why didn't what you to umm become a Harper and all?" he asks quietly "I mean, there's not really umm anything wrong with bein' a Harper. Is there?"

Zorya shrugs in response, "Dunno. Iffen ya ask my family there is. Kinda like riders, just ain't a good thing…" she replies a bit awkwardly. So maybe family isn't a particularly good topic of conversation either. At least its better than discussing the recent candidate trip however. "They dun see thin's the same way as everyone else, mosta 'em. Couple that left home an' are at the weyr, they see it like most people, but back home… well… things is different there."

Kharzan hmms a little thoughfully and then nods "So umm, why did you want to umm, become a Harper? I mean, if you grew up where uh, people seem to be uh set in their ways. What uh, I guess. Opened your eyes?"

Zorya shrugs again, "Ah saw 'em once when Ah was little." she starts, "Ah liked singin and dancin, but wasn't really somethin we did… an'.. well Ah guess Ah didn't really know Ah wanted ta be a Harper til Ah got ta Ista."

Kharzan gives a little nod as he listens and shifts his feet in the water. "I didn't umm really know that I wanted to be umm a Techer. I just I just knew I like well umm figuring out how to make things umm work." he shrugs some "It wasn't until I met Trest, he's the one that really taught me." he notes with a smile.

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