Who Hanalee, Rayathess
What Hanalee doesn't need a tour of Harper Hall, but shares updates with Rayathess while those who do take one.
When Summer, 2725
Where Corridor, Harper Hall

 

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HarperCraft Hall - Entrance Foyer
While it appears small, the foyer is actually quite large lengthwise and serves as a welcoming 'gateway' for guests and as a connecting 'hub' for the Crafters and workers posted here. Overhead, hanging from the high beams carved into the equally as high ceiling are a pair of chandeliers that still use glows and the light cast from them is cool against the stone walls and the stone tiles of the floor. On the walls, several tapestries are hung, some with the Harper Hall insignia and others depicting scenes of Pern's history or the Hall's history.

To the left, a large doorway leads to the Dining Hall while cut into the floor and hugging the wall is a stairwell that leads down to the Kitchens and Lower Levels, while to the right, another large doorway leads to the Great Hall. Directly ahead, a staircase winds upwards to the second level hallways and a direct access to the living quarters and Masterharper of Pern's Office. Beyond it, another door leads further into the Hall and into a corridor leading to the Archives and an access tunnel bridging this Hall with Healer Hall.


Several hours past breakfast sees the hall playing host to visitors from Fort, a small cluster of dragonrider-hopefuls who are trailed into the entrance hall by their escort. As more-or-less promised, an unsigned missive addressed to Rayathess some three days ago arrived with forewarning of the incoming tour group, scribbled on a sheet of paper carefully wrapped around a small pebble and delivered by firelizard. While the candidates and their rider exchange polite greetings with their guide for the morning and turn their attention to the tapestries in the entry, Hanalee makes her way through the corridors with purposeful ease, stopping at the appropriate office to requisition a replacement journeyman's knot. It's not an instant gratification sort of process; after her name, rank and posting are cross-verified, there's a short waiting period while the colors of Fort Weyr are added into its weave. Rather at loose ends in the interim, her leisurely stroll through the hallways inevitably brings her to that juncture where one could turn into the archives; here, she slows to an easy lean against a wall where she could probably catch sight of foot traffic approaching from both directions - watching for the eventual passage of the tour group, perhaps.

The choice is not a bad one from a logical view point! Enough traffic filters through that juncture to assure an eventual crossing of paths - usually, that is. With the forewarning given, one Master has likely made himself purposely scarce. Rayathess' lack of warmth towards the Weyr extends even to their eventual excursions; he only tolerates it so long as he isn't personally involved. So it has remained today, so far, until something (or someone) tipped him off that another source of interest has wound up separated - on her own business, of course. That's not why he seeks her out, but his arrival doesn't come from the hallway itself but from the entranceway leading into the Archives. As he steps out, Rayathess barely casts her a sidelong look, pretending to be more idly focused on fixing some errant fold in his clothes (or perhaps checking an inner pocket for its contents). "Not with the rest of them this morning?" he mutters. That'd be 'good morning', too, unspoken.

It's hard for Hanalee to miss the other harper's emergence from the archives - in fact, she rather looks pleased to see him, as though hoping for just this sort of occurrence. "Do you think I would be enlightened by a tour of the hall, master harper?" she asks lightly in reply, chin tilting to indicate the direction whence she came down the hallway. "I needed to get a replacement for my spare knot." And before he can ask what might have happened to it, "A little bandit in the nursery made off with the one I was wearing while on-duty and gave her imaginary runner quite the lasso." The tassels must have made it far more appealing than the simpler addition to her other shoulder. Quite looking as though she'd like to say more, there's a glance in the other direction - is that the sound of the tour guide extolling the breadth of knowledge contained in the hall's archives? Or perhaps a class about to march past?

"I'm actually surprised they didn't coerce you into leading it," Rayathess replies dryly and with little hesitation. He might not have asked for that tale of the demise of her knot, content to merely quirk a brow for her reason to be here and not with them. Instead she earns an expression where both his brows lift for a moment of disbelief. Why tell him this (and clearly, someone's in a gloomy mood)? "They have you tending the nurseries and creches?" Is all he has to say to that, with a dismissive scoff. Rayathess must hear something similar to what drew Hanalee's attention and he will mutter a quick, "follow me", before moving away at a decent stride. They don't go far, merely closer to that further recessed and not as heavily trafficked tunnel that bridges an interior connection between Harper and Healer Halls. He's not about to risk either of them being caught near "private" rooms. It'll have to serve for now. "Summer brings plenty with the warmer days." he remarks, a touch reluctantly. Could be 'the warning was appreciated'. But his brows furrow in a very obvious 'why?' Why is she here? Aside from the knot and the obvious.

"If this hadn't been designated as a rest day for me, they would have succeeded, " Hana points out. "Besides, I already showed some of the candidates not from Fort our archives and where to find materials most of interest to the classes we've had so far." She doesn't quite roll her eyes for his look of disbelief, but arches an eyebrow back. "I try to rotate through some of the standard chores once or twice a seven, " probably to be fair, "but some people apparently see the words 'free assistant' when they see us passing by." She certainly doesn't need to justify how she spends her time at the weyr to him, but sounds briefly defensive nonetheless, following him to the quieter walkway. "The winds are fair, " she says in kind once their movements slow, perhaps as much acknowledgement as a signal that the status quo remains unchanged from her present vantage point. "You look well, " she adds afterward, as much in passing remark as carefully inserted inquiry.

Rayathess' opinions on the whole matter is clearly visible in his features and the way they darken as his mouth draws into a grimace. "You sound like you're enjoying yourself." he remarks and not without what sounds like disapproval - or is it disappointment? Maybe he's been through this song and dance before with other promising Harpers. Could be he picks up on her defensiveness too and he'll tuck that little note away in his head. "The winds are fair," he agrees, his gaze casting outwards to be certain they're not about to be interrupted. "But winds can change and swiftly." What could that mean? He doesn't linger long on the topic, as his brows furrow again and darts his gaze back to her. "Well enough," he relents. "But surely that's not all you wish to discuss?" Notably, he does not inquire further about her - not yet, at least.

Hanalee folds her arms over her chest, studying him in the wake of that nuance behind how much she may or may not be enjoying her candidacy. "It's a more stressful period than I would have anticipated, " she admits after a moment, "but it doesn't follow that I shouldn't try to make the best of it, even if I do want to get back more fully to planning my next field research when it's all over with. Yuon told me to - be observant." Perhaps wisely, she doesn't elaborate further on that topic, blue eyes narrowing ever so slightly in bemusement. "They can, " she ventures of those winds, more quietly, but in a way suggesting that his meaning probably does escape her for the moment. As for his well-being encompassing the entirety of what she wanted to discuss? "Aren't some determinations best made outside of correspondence? I hope I haven't disrupted much of your morning schedule." A breath, then: "Most of the other candidates are rather young. I don't know if others at the weyr are as fond of studying the weather, and it's - refreshing to have some communication with less pretense involved, however brief."

"Difficult to be observant when you are being tasked in several varying degrees every day." Rayathess counters again, ever pessimistic. You would think it would not be that hard to give one compliment or good word! If he's in any way disappointed by her missing any hidden meaning, he either lets it slide or perhaps there wasn't that much depth to it. As for the rest, well - at last she cracks through enough of his shield that he permits just a flicker of a smile and some dry humor. "Are you saying you're bored of your younger Candidates company?" He frames it like a curious inquiry and serious enough but maybe there's a faint tone of mockery. What did she expect, among the Candidate ranks?

"Difficult, " Hana agrees with a lift of her chin, "but not impossible." For his hint of a smile, she has a more obvious one to exchange, tone warming to her topic. "I think most of them find it easier to befriend each other. There aren't many closer to thirty than twenty, and trying to explain my academic career to those who ask has tended to - perplex, which I should have expected. Some of the younger apprentices, not harpers, have asked me for guidance, a time or two, " and that's a strange experience for her, says the way she frowns briefly over that. "One requested Yuon's meditation techniques. I didn't go in looking for pseudo-apprentices of my own."

Rayathess has gone largely silent, his gaze drifting back towards the renewed activity in the main thoroughfares of the entrance foyer. No one appears to notice them and that has him relaxing a fraction. “You can’t fault them entirely for thinking as they do — they’re young, of course their minds are focused on different things.” Simple things, is what he’s implying. He quirks a brow, “Do they not have — no, I suppose it would be easier in their heads to approach you. Probably trying to seek some connection.” He smirks a little. “And yet somehow you may gain some.” There’s a low exhale, as he weighs some option in those guarded thoughts of his. “Have you put much thought in what you will do after the Hatching? Aside from the obvious.” Which he’s going to assume that failing Impression, she will choose to return fully to her Craft.

"People want connection, do they not, " Hanalee says matter-of-factly, her own stance relaxing with a little shrug; this, at least, she knows for certain from her ongoing study of others. "Need it, perhaps, in some cases, especially when one is really away from what's familiar for what may be the first time." No, she doesn't fault the younger demographic among her fellows, but it doesn't follow that they're necessarily easy to relate to. Her cheeks color lightly for his smirk, or maybe for the topic he broaches next. "I think it may behoove me to take some lessons in self-defense, in the short-term. In the long-term, I did mean what I said about wanting the opportunity to be published again some day, not as the subtitled senior apprentice. Yuon has hinted that I should give some consideration to choosing a master's thesis, should I wish to go that route." She doesn't exactly search his features for approval, but certainly with interest for his reply.

“Most do want a connection,” Rayathess is more on the opposite spectrum but he has valid reasons for shunning most social contact, even among his own peers. Hard to put much trust in people when that trust was so deeply broken and twisted Turns and Turns ago; seeing the worst of people and what atrocities they can commit, well, he can be forgiven, a little? “And your point is valid.” He’ll concede that much too. At her thoughts on lessons, he gives her a long look. “I’m surprised you haven’t yet.” he admits, as if this was an expected skill for her to have already. As for the long term plans, he merely nods his head. That alone could be ‘approval’ of some form. “And what if you do Impress? You realize that you will need to rebuild much of what you’ve created for yourself within the Craft.”

Maybe Hanalee reads something of his not being one of those who do in that 'most, ' but if she does, that gets filed away in favor of continuing their discussion on post-hatching plans. "I've - been reminded, lately, that it's something I should have learned sooner." It's possible it wasn't a pleasant sort of reminder, either, given the way her shoulders tense briefly, then drop. "I'm given to understand that if I do, " Impress, "there could be more to rebuild than just one's career." And she's aware of the weight of that concept; Impression can change people. "It's a rather large 'if, ' however, " she says then, sensibly. "There are easily four times as many candidates as there are eggs, " and perhaps she finds that fact reassuring, this woman who obviously has goals and potential for professional growth outside of the weyr.

Rayathess’ gaze narrows as he scowls. Did he catch that tenseness? Or is he merely reacting to what wasn’t said by Hanalee? “Has something happened?” he asks, rather abruptly, before he wills himself to neutrality. Still, his jaw still carries some tension to it, to match the lingering grimace. Her response on Impression brings a non-committal scoff. “You’re willing to face having to rebuild more of yourself, for the chance?” he mutters, though he seems unsurprised by the last bit of information she carries. “That’s always been the way of it but only a fool bets on the chances of their non-Impression and doesn’t plan.”

Hana's jaw tightens for a long moment, too. "It's nothing I can't handle, " she answers at length, posture coiling inward again before relaxing too smoothly to be anything but a deliberate attempt to exhale away her tension. "Encountering - some rudeness, " well, that's one word for harassment, "is all but inevitable with a large mix of people and personalities." She shifts a little, hands uncurling at her sides from where her fingertips had pressed into her palms just seconds ago. "I'm willing to keep my word that I'll see this to its conclusion. I've had to accept that there may be permanent consequences afterward - and if it requires terribly uncomfortable growth that I had hoped I was mostly finished with, that's a price I'll have no choice but to pay." There's no mention of childhood dreams, no special note of hope for a successful outcome here; it might not be so far-fetched to extrapolate that she doesn't join in when other candidates talk about their hopes and dreams for gaining large, winged friends. Dubiously: "The lack of privacy would, I imagine, prove especially difficult to manage." She's probably referring to something wholly different from the relative lack of privacy in barracks and dormitories.

“Bravado won’t get you far. Neither will misplaced pride,” Rayathess notes grimly and with the weight of experience. It’s no secret what he lived through when he was much younger; anyone with the time and a penance for digging through records will have the whole story. “Hmm.” He hums thoughtfully, not entirely sold on her answer but seeming disinterested in pushing further. “Personalities can crash, when too many are gathered together.” If that’s what it truly is but he favors moving on with the conversation. “Sounds like you have it all figured out then, truly.” Rayathess’ tone is nearing sarcastic, but the edge slightly dulled by the vaguest of smirks. Maybe his thoughts are different, but he doesn’t share them this time. “The lack of privacy… as a weyrling, you mean?”

Hanalee opens, then closes her mouth. If she almost looks indignant for his words of caution, it deflates rapidly into a sober agreement of, "No, perhaps not. The lessons will help." Really, she must be repeating that for her own benefit; of course the aforementioned self-defense classes will be beneficial to her, regardless of the hatching's outcome. Recalling herself to the other topic at hand, there's that briefly searching look again, followed by a small, wry smile. "Down to every detail, " because she's capable of poking fun at herself now and again. More seriously, with some slight hesitation, "As a weyrling, as a rider; I've heard you can't keep a secret from them, once the bond is made. - But I somehow doubt you really want to speculate on the mysteries of dragonriding." She's clearly willing to dismiss this topic if it will increase his comfort. "Are there any promising new faces among the apprentices?" That might be a safer avenue of discussion.

Rayathess isn’t the least bit phased by her indignation and is readied to stand his ground on the matter; when she sobers, he will ease the tension from his shoulders. “They will.” he confirms, on the matter of those lessons. Not that he figures the Weyr is a terribly dangerous place — but one can never be too careful. His brows furrow again when the topic drifts, even seriously, back to the topic of weyrlinghood and riders. He listens, but there is a sense of discomfort growing. “You’d be right on that.” he mutters and leave it to her to parse whether it was on her guess about the bond or his lack of desire on speculation — or both. Then she brings up a topic he isn’t so against discussing, even briefly. “A few. They are still rather fresh and new to the Craft, so time will tell if they continue to improve.” And perhaps Rayathess is just overly critical.

"It hasn't been the easiest concept for me to digest, either, " Hana admits of dragon bonds and privacy or lack thereof, but (perhaps wisely) leaves further discussion along that vein behind. Stance shifting to one more at ease, she makes a thoughtful sort of noise for his evaluation of the newest batch of apprentices, focus moving past him for a moment in a look of here-but-not. "I'm sure Yuon would be appreciative if you're able to share their names with her. She wrote me the other day and said she plans to return to the hall soon 'for a short time, '" which is usually the red headed Bitran's way of stating that she's ready to consider taking on a new apprentice. Of course, the timing may well have the side benefit of letting her witness the end of her most recent protege's candidacy. Blue eyes return to his soon after, eyebrows lifting with her next, carefully curious query: "Do you plan to attend the hatching?" With at least three harpers among the healthy selection available for the six and the potential to be bound to the Fort region for at least two turns after, perhaps more, there will surely be those somewhere in the hall with an interest in the outcome even if he might not be numbered among them. Certainly, she doesn't look especially expectant one way or the other.

“Then I’ll be certain to give a few names of some Apprentices that Yuon may find some hope in,” Rayathess answers and yet there’s no unspoken promise as to when that may be. He casts his gaze out over the rest of the foyer, wary even here in the Hall — but some habits die hard or not at all. His attention drifts back to her, perhaps a bit sharply, at her query. Brows knit and lower and likely she has her answer then and there and well before he begins to speak. “No. I tend not to attend the Hatchings. My brother is more for the event than I ever have been.” Even if the clutch dam is a gold that belongs to one of the so very few riders he’ll agree to speak with. It’s complicated, even with the number of Harpers among the Candidates aside! “Though I am sure there will be plenty of others clamouring to witness the event.”

Hanalee, too, glances back toward the more frequented part of the corridor as he does, and hardly looks surprised by that downturn of brows, by his reply. "No, " she echoes then with a little nod, expression smooth. "I suppose you wouldn't, " as his relationship with the weyr really isn't much of a secret. "What do you tend to attend, master harper? Other than pomp and circumstance ceremonies here at the hall, " which apparently don't count. It's a lightly presented inquiry. "Crafters fairs? The occasional gather?" They're casual guesses. "I'm partial to looking at book and vellum stalls, myself, " she volunteers; of course she would be.

He isn’t so freely volunteering and while his gaze holds to Hanalee for a silent moment, it appears she may have struck too close to something. A nerve? Memories? Who knows. Rayathess has a closed off air about him, as he motions towards the gathering groups now milling near the entrance foyer. “Shouldn’t you be rejoining your group?” he remarks, seemingly casually but there’s a hint of suggested dismissal. So much for a lightly presented inquiry?

Hanalee is no doubt cataloging his response to review again later, as learning what causes others to act and react must surely be part of her extracurricular studies presently. There's a pondering, little frown that briefly narrows her gaze - here and gone in a flash - the sort one might use when confronted with a particularly challenging puzzle. "The transport over was convenient, " she says similarly, studying him for a minute longer before she darts another look to the busier hallway again. "You didn't seem very surprised to find me here, " she voices then mildly, features schooling to her usual, affable politeness. "Is there aught you would have me know, before I check on my new knot and the status of my ride back?"

“They’ll not want you lingering or staying behind.” Rayathess points out again and when she brings up his lack of surprise, his brows furrow along with his narrowing gaze. The note was unsigned, but he assumed that she was the author behind it. Who else would it be? He’d not peg Yuon to be so meddling. “It must have been chance and coincidence,” he replies dryly — and likely coded. There’s a small shake of his head, “I’ve nothing more to say.” And it’s the truth or insofar as to what he would involve her with presently. He’s already taking a small step back, his head dipping shallowly but in respect. “I’ll let you rejoin your… peers. Clear skies, Candidate Hanalee.”

Yuon is quite fond of meddling, but would not have sent such a note, no. She'd be far more likely to be amused from afar by any discomfort an unexpected encounter with the tour group might have caused. "Indeed?" says the journeyman for chance and coincidence, with only the slightest change in pitch at the end. As his chin dips, so too does hers. Evenly, "I apologize if I've interrupted your morning." Sir may as well have been spoken at the end, and the smile she flashes is quick - brightens a tad despite herself, perhaps, for her name - but disappears soon after. "Good day, master harper." She lets a beat elapse, then permits herself a quiet, "Rayathess, " before retracing her steps up the corridor, presumably to claim her replacement knot and do just as he suggests, rejoin the group that's soon enough ready to return to the weyr.


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