'The World of Pern(tm)' and 'The Dragonriders of Pern(r)' are copyright to Anne McCaffrey (c) l967, 2000. This is a recorded online session, by permission of the author but generated on PernWorld MUSH for the benefit of people unable to attend.
Fort Weyr - Smithy Repairs
Off the tunnel leading to the inner sections of Fort Weyr is this small smith shop. The entry area has been separated off from the forge in the back by a U-shaped counter, forming a nice little waiting area for customers. There are a few chairs there for sitting. The counter in front is covered in piles of papers: receipts mostly, standards paperwork, signed copies of things, and other bits of this and that. A plaque on the counter reads: In Living Memory of Jedrek, original owner/operator.
The forge itself is off to the right of the shop, carved right into the stone and has several anvils around it that the smiths uses to shape the metal against. There are a few different workbenches each with their own tools for different jobs, the one that stands out the most is the long one closest to the door. This one is covered in small metal parts and where the smiths usually sit to repair items. The left side of the shop's wall has many machinery parts hanging on it and some larger tools.
Towards the back of the left side of the shop is a staircase leading up into a private living area.
Mid-morning arrives, cool and and still with fog, but the smithy shows no signs of slowing their progress or giving in to the half-hearted signs of summer's passing. Fires and coals still glow, and the clangs of hammers still ring out of the forge, where a crafter is hard at work. Siobhan, straddling the bench nearest the door, occasionally peeks back towards the source of those loud noises, visibly intrigued, before she's jerked upright by the smithcrafter helping her fit a new bracer and heavy leather glove with metal eyelets and clips that look much too heavy to be for normal gardening use. "Pay attention," the man grumbles before bending back to his work, missing the fact that Sio has petulantly mocked him with a scrunch of her nose and a bored look to one side. Necessary as it is, the girl has no patience for sitting and waiting for things. If only she had a distraction… sigh.
Marika enters with a purposeful stride, decked out in full guard uniform today. She has a long flat box under one arm, and the contents rattle and clank slightly as she walks. In her other hand, she carries a long wooden stick, which she props up against the counter once she arrives. The box is placed on the counter, and she leans forward, poking her head around to see if she can spot another smith lurking back there. She grimaces finally, and straightens up, turning to glance around the room. Siobhan gets a polite nod, the young guard shooting a sheepish look at the box on the counter. "Er, hey. Been here long?" she asks, fidgeting slightly. Impaaatient.
And here comes another possible distraction! …Maybe? Wearing pale, plain clothes, grey enough to match the fog outside, B'ky without his striking crimson and indigo leathers - or indeed, out of leathers entirely - is something of a rare sight, though one that's been increasingly common over the past sevenday. Of course, with his arm still bound in that sling, he hardly has need of work clothes. Instead, sporting long pants, sturdy boots, and a loose tunic, the Roc wingleader enters the smithy, clipboard tucked under his free arm. Alas, even when off active duty, the man continues to work, B'ky moves to the counter, to set his clipboard down, intending to wait as well. Siobhan and the smithcrafter by her receive a polite nod, and a pleasant, "Good morning," as he passes, the bluerider pausing momentarily to lift a brow at the sight of that glove. "That is rather interesting…" he comments, before inclining his head with a quietly formal, "Marika," in greeting to the guardwoman.
Siobhan watches Marika and that box of hers the second she comes in, light eyes flicking from the guard to her clanking object and back, blatantly curious. It's only when she nods that the beastcrafter remembers her manners, chin dipping in a return nod of greeting. "Yeah," she says in response to Marika's question, free hand pointing down to the manifold glitters of metal on her glove, "you could say something like that. About done though, I hope." Mischief alights on her features when the smith working on her glove starts to mutter under his breath, but Siobhan obviously has no sympathy for the man. Instead she glances up towards B'ky with a crooked smirk and a raise of one brow in return for the bluerider's sling. ""Morning. It's a hawking glove," Sio says by way of explanation, as though that should make a world of sense to him. "Or, at least, it will be soon."
Marika seems a little startled by the sound of her name, as she whips her head around suddenly, exhaling when she realizes it's B'ky. "Sir." she says, nodding to the man. Her gaze lazily travels to the sling the wingleader still wears, then quickly shifts away, her expression a mix of sheepishness and guilt. Siobhan's answer is there, thankfully, to pull the guard's attention from blueriders and their slings. "Ah, good, good. I hope so too, I need to get back to training." she says, though she grabs her stick and heads over to take a seat and wait, leaving the box on the counter. "A, what was it, hawking glove?" she asks, frowning at the glove, curiously.
B'ky leans against the counter, the elbow of his unbound arm resting lightly on the clipboard he'd placed there. He doesn't appear terribly impatient, although he glances back toward the forge for a moment or two, watching the work. The wingleader ahs quietly, nodding somewhat at Siobhan's explanation of the glove, "I've not seen very many for those," gaze flicking to her knot for a moment. "Are you visiting from one of the holds?" he asks politely, pausing briefly before offering an introduction to go along with his question, "I'm B'ky, Avideth's." The attention on his slight has the bluerider shifting just slightly, having caught both the raised brow from Sio and Marika's guilty expression. Still, there is a fairly warm smile at the guardswoman's greeting, and a slight headtilt, "Hm, training? You've returned to duty already?" as if he'd expected her to be out longer. Marika's box receives a vaguely curious glance as well, the man asking, "Mm, you're here to have some work done for the guards?"
Siobhan's attention is redirected for a minute, so that the smithcrafter can measure the length of the jesses against the span of the glove to the metal swivel he was adding at her wrist, but the girl's attention is quickly sucked back into conversation. "This is usually the last bit they add. Training, though?" Sio peers at Marika's outfit, as though finally recognizing the guard's uniform. "Oh, right." A normal person would look sheepish for the slip-up, but the girl just grins and nods. "Hawking glove, for gryphhawks. This one isn't mine, it's being fixed for the master I'm working under, but it's the field glove they land on when out hunting wherries." Scrunching her eyes and nose up in a pert expression for B'ky, she shakes her head. "No, I just moved here from the Beastcraft Hall. Nice to meet you, though, B'ky, and you too, miss," she adds towards Marika. "I'm Siobhan." Her knot speaks for the rest, marking her as a senior apprentice.
Marika nods slowly, fidgeting with the staff a bit. "Er, yes, sir. Healers cleared me to return to duty a few days ago. Just a tap on the head, sir, I've had worse." Her nose, for one. It looks a little off, as if broken and then set slightly wrong. "Yes sir, need a weapon repaired. Hemi broke his blade, sir, on a training dummy, I'm just here to drop the thing off for repairs." she says, with a little shrug. Technically, she could probably just leave a note and go back to work, but she seems perfectly happy to wait. "Mmhmm, training. Marika, I'm a guard, so's Hemi." Well, that much is obvious. Marika tilts her head at the glove, and nods slowly. "I see. That must be a sight to see." she says, eying the glove thoughtfully. "…they're only used for hunting?" she asks, a bit of professional concern slipping through. Guards must be on the lookout for dangerous things, and all. Keeping the Weyr safe.
B'ky inclines his head again, and offers the beastcrafter a polite, "Well met, Siobhan. And welcome to Fort Weyr." He watches the work on the glove with mild curiosity, "Mm, gryphhawks? Is your master intending to train them here at Fort?" Thin brows rise just slightly, the wingleader agreeing with the guardswoman, "That would be rather something to see. I've not known anyone who's worked with them for some time. Ah, not since I met a trader in Ruatha, who.. held an event a few turns ago." There's a nod for Marika, the wingleader giving her another warm smile, "I'm glad you were alright. I imagine there are worse hazards in Fort, than unstable bookshelves." Especially with wingleaders hanging off of them. Cough. "I see," he murmurs, in regards to the box, the man looking thoughtful for a moment, "I suppose the guards must go through a lot of equipment. Hmm, at some point, I ought to check to see if they've had any shipments waiting," the man half-turning to jot something down on the clipboard.
Siobhan eyes the box anew, faintly surprised it was a blade in there, but that certainly explained its contents. "Repairs? It sounded mighty broken, to be clanking, Miss Marika. If you don't mind me saying." An overly-amused look glints in Sio's eyes, but she nods, eager to discuss the glove and the craft attached to it. "It's definitely a sight. Something as wild as them following orders? Nothing's quite like it. They're definitely just for hunting, though. Raised around humans all their lives, so there's not much danger to them." She shrugs through a grin, as if to say there was just as much danger as with felines and canines. "Thanks for the welcome, though. He's training the 'hawks for export to nearby holds, aye. They're useful for hunting wherries and small creatures and the like." A beat. "Held and event? With gryphhawks?" This seems to be a novel concept for Siobhan, but one she seems excited about. Uh oh, B'ky, now what have you done? That clipboard is eyed for a brief moment, but Sio has little use nor patience for paperwork, so she looks away fast, back to where the smithcrafter puts the finishing touches on the glove. "Excellent, thank you." Flexing her fingers in the too-large glove, she picks herself up off the bench and motions towards Marika, letting the guardswoman take her place if she so chose.
Marika shrugs slightly, glancing to the box. "It's just a training blade, really. The metal quality isn't all that good, better blades are rather difficult to obtain, but it's good enough for the training dummies. He's got a decent one for duty, but even that wouldn't last long if he used it to train with." the young guard notes, with a shrug. "We do go through a fair bit, sir, but the metal can always be melted down and put to new use. Nothing is wasted, sir, we're very careful about that." Metals aren't exactly in high supply, after all. The teen frowns slightly, and shakes her head a little, "Sorry, sir, we've had that drilled into us ever since we signed up. Drills have a way of… sticking." she says, with a sheepish little shrug. "Just Marika, please." she tells Siobhan, grimacing slightly. As for the clanking, she shrugs, "It's a broken training sword in a box, it's bound to rattle a bit. But, ah, yeah, it's been repaired too many times, just not as strong as it once was. It'll probably have to be melted down this time." she says, glancing to the box, looking rather unconcerned. She tips her head at Siobhan when the beastcrafter motions, and eyes the box on the counter, briefly. "Uh, sir, did you have business here?" she asks of B'ky. Okay, now she's clearly just procrastinating.
B'ky is leaning back against the counter, occasionally giving the forge a glance as the clanging of work continues. He's in pale grey clothing - tunic, pants, and sturdy boots - hair bound in a neat runnertail, the dyed midnight-hued lock unbraided today. As Siobhan gets up, he glances between her and Marika, giving the latter a slight smile, "Ah, there is no hurry. Please, go ahead," motioning to the smithcrafter, "I only need a few receipts. It isn't urgent." With his arm in a sling, he certainly has nothing to do but paperwork. "Mm, I see," he nods to the guard, when she explains the broken blade, the man chuckling softly about the drills, "I imagine they do." There is quiet agreement with Siobhan, "They are rather remarkable creatures. It must take quite a bit of skill.. and time, to train them. Mm, the event in Ruatha was part of a gather, just a demonstration of fetching things or catching pieces of wherry thrown into the air. It was lovely to watch, however," pausing a moment, "I don't suppose something like that could be done here? I imagine.. with the way things have been going.. it might be a welcome distraction." Meaning the trade crisis and the slight food shortage.
Siobhan, hardly worldly in the way of metals, does manage to nod in a sagely fashion for Marika's waste-not, want-not approach towards the blade. "Shame that it might have to be melted instead of fixed again, but I suppose if you're hacking and chopping at training dummies with it all the time, it'd break pretty fast." Her eyes scrunch at the guardswoman's dismissal of the word 'miss', but nods to acknowledge her request before switching her gaze over to B'ky. "Same amount of time and skill as raising a dragon, I'd presume, just without the advantage of being able to speak to them. Training and raising's all body language and attentiveness, for the most part." Dark eyebrows lift, but Sio certainly seems to consider the idea of putting on an aerial display. "I'd have to talk to my mentor - they're his, after all - but I'm sure it could be arranged if you think it'd help lighten some spirits. Nothing like an aerial display for that, right?," she asks through another grin, sliding the glove and cuff off her hand and tapping them against her leg, obviously torn between staying and chatting and getting the objects back to her mentor. She, like Marika, seems to be leaning towards procrastination at least.
Marika grimaces slightly as B'ky refuses her offer to let the wingleader go ahead of her, and gets to her feet, moving to the counter, and pushing the box towards the smith, explaining, "Here's a broken practice blade, it'll probably need to be melted down, but if you can repair it, please do, sir." she says, opening the box to reveal the blade. It's of a decent length, and it's definitely in two pieces. Whoops. The smith takes the sword, box and all, and apparently decides it's only good for smelting, as he takes it away to do just that. Marika shrugs a little, an 'I tried' sort of a gesture, and moves back to grab her staff. "Well, that's that." she says, her work here done. And yet, she doesn't leave, instead nodding slowly at B'ky. "I wish I'd been there to see that, sir, that sounds interesting to watch. Quite the morale booster, I'd imagine." she says, with a nod. There's a glance back at the counter, and the guard seems to make up her mind, "I… really ought to see if there are any replacement blades available for training, before I head back." Yep. Her decision is to not go anywhere, actually. She plops herself rather ungracefully back down in her seat, absently toying with her staff. "Mm, an aerial display sounds like something to see. If your master has the time to do such a thing, let me know. I'd love to be there." she says, bobbing her head quickly. "I can think of a few who would, actually." Probably her fellow guards.
"Ah.. Dragons aren't trained.. or raised the way most animals are, rather, they are more like children. Though they mature in a few turns.." He shakes his head a little, somewhat amused by her comparison, although he had to add, "Still, I imagine it is rather interesting work." He nods about the possibility of an event, "It would certainly be welcome. Fort hasn't had anything like it, that I can recall, although the Connell Festival should be in the planning stages soon." The bluerider tilts his head to glance at that blade briefly, perhaps just a little curious, nodding to Marika after the smith takes it away to be melted. "Mm, it was quite interesting, although I imagine similar might be done with firelizards.." and here he looks /very/ thoughtful. He gives the two procrastinating girls something of an amused smile, pausing with an, "Ah, which reminds me," as the guard stays as well, "Has there been any activity in the storage cavern?" likely meaning the one with the tampered crates, "Nothing's been noticed since the first incident?"
Siobhan has that Look, one of a young girl plotting things a turn in advance without really asking anybody first. "Of course! I'll be sure it's well-advertised. It'd probably be best if we did it in the center of the bowl, too. Lots of wide-open airspace, but also without the distraction of real game." The pattering of the gloves against her leg finally reaches a peak and stops in time with her plotting, crooked smile quirking up on her lips again when B'ky laughs. "Yeah, good point, I suppose they're really different when it comes down to it, but it still takes months of the same sort of devotion to time to appropriately raise them. Otherwise, they learn that humans are the source of their food and attack you when you don't give it to them." For some reason, the girl is disturbingly cheerful about that fact. "You're right, though, it's interesting to watch the process, even after all the training is over and they're working hunters. I'm sure we'd all be excited to demonstrate their skills. The firelizards can join in." Though, as an outsider, Siobhan has little information to supply about the storage caverns, her curiosity is still piqued, eyes darting between B'ky and Marika.
Marika nods slowly. "Hmm, firelizards in flight would be something. Can they be trained like that?" she asks, apparently surprised. But her aversion to the creatures doesn't seem to extend to seeing them in flight - likely she'd share the same apprehension about gryphhawks up close as well. The guard shakes her head slowly at B'ky's question. "No sir, not a thing. You would hear straight away if something happened." There's a pause, though, and Marika frowns a little. "…although. It's probably nothing, sir, but I was on watch there until late last night. I thought I heard noises. Sort of… skittering, inside the cavern. I went in to inspect the crates, and nothing seemed disturbed, as far as I could tell. I didn't actually look inside any, sir." She pauses again, grimacing slightly. "But like I said… probably nothing. Nothing /seemed/ disturbed, none of the crates had any holes or cracks, as far as I could see." But her emphasis on 'seemed' is worrying. There's a slow nod for Siobhan. "I think I know something of what you mean, about the process. My brother, my older brother is a guard. It was interesting seeing him change as he went through the training and became a proper guard, interesting seeing Hemi change as well." Though she seems slightly uncertain about the latter, for some reason.
The arrival of a young healer is an effective non sequitur — it's almost a joke, really; a bluerider, a beastcrafter, and a guard are in the smithy when a healer walks in … but that's about where a potential joke ends. Galya steps in without preamble, pausing just to a side of the entryway to retrieve a few slips of paper from one of her pockets. The papers are unfolded, straightened, and layered just *so*, but the details are difficult to make out from any distance. Her unblinking attention slides across not only the interior of the place but, also, the people within it. She says nothing at all, instead offering only the shallowest of nods for the two she recognizes — which would be B'ky and Marika, in that order.
B'ky does tilt his head at Siobhan's plotting look, the bluerider's brow furrowing slightly. "Mm, the center bowl has rather a lot of traffic during the day. I imagine somewhere like the lake shore might be better suited to an event," the suggestion made with a hint of mirth still. "Mm, I suppose so," he chuckles softly, about raising the creatures, just shaking his head somewhat at mention that they attack people if trained improperly. There's a, "Hmm.. I believe so," on the subject of training firelizards, the man telling Marika, "I've seen a few who've been taught to fetch items and fly in specific patterns, although I've none of my own, so I'm unsure how much time it would take.." As for the storage cavern, the wingleader's lips press together in a line for a moment, before he remarks, "It is probably nothing. Even so.. I should probably send someone down to check the crates." The arrival of the healer has B'ky glancing toward the doorway, inclining his head as he recognizes Galina, offering a slight smile and a quiet, "Hello," in greeting.
Siobhan's face contorts into something wry and mirthful for Marika's words, but she nods just the same. "It takes more time than with dragons, but even young men can change for the better." She's obviously kidding about that… Or at least, one would hope so. Her amusement carries on in the look she transfers over to Galina when the Healer walks in, smirk dimming down into a slight smile that accompanies a nod of greeting. "The lake shore?" Sio's lips press flat in contemplation, but she shrugs, as if to say she'd consider it. "We'll be sure to scope out the best location. There's bound to be somewhere that's just perfect." The idea of something skittering around in the storage caverns brings a wrinkle of distaste to the girl's features. "Ew. You don't think it's spiderclaws, do you? Or did it sound bigger than those?" Cue a delicate shudder. "I hate spiderclaws."
Marika glances up as Galina enters, responding to the healer's nod with one of her own, and a polite "Ma'am." by way of greeting. The guard nods slowly, seeming interested. "Huh. Firelizards can be trained to fetch things? That… that actually seems useful." She seems surprised by this new information. What does not surprise her is B'ky's reaction to the news about the storage cavern. "I do hope it's nothing, sir, but better safe than sorry." she says, with a nod. Seems like she's more concerned about it than she's letting on. She frowns just slightly at Siobhan's words, but shrugs. "Training is training. Sometimes I think you could replace half the guard force with well-trained animals and no-one could tell the difference." she rolls her eyes, though she's exaggerating somewhat. "But it is interesting to see how the training changes them. My brother, for instance, takes his work very seriously, but his time off just as seriously. For every bit as hard as he works, he has just as much 'fun' when he's not working. Living life to the full, he calls it. Sounds exhausting, to me. He never used to be like that." but, she shrugs, and shakes her head. "Whatever makes him happy, I guess."
"Hello," is echoed for B'ky's sake, with Galina finally moving to the counter to hand over the papers to the first available smith. Siobhan is the recipient of a delayed nod of acknowledgment, but it's a nod all the same; Marika's 'ma'am' is met with a flatly corrective, "Galina." The smith reviews the papers, one brow lofting skyward before he nods and heads off to go retrieve something or another. Whatever conversation has been going on since before she arrived is a thing of peripheral interest, but one that, ultimately, doesn't seem to be of enough interest for her to interject into — at least, not until firelizards are mentioned. That elicits only: "Yes, firelizards can be taught to do many things. The ones that look to me are well-suited to the task of retrieving items or delivering messages, but it has taken considerable time to train them properly toward that end." Pause. "Save for Redwort, who seems more inclined to protect things without needing much prompting."
There's a faintly arched brow at the beastcrafter's words, "Even young men?" B'ky chuckles somewhat, gently shaking his head. "Mm, it's where most events at Fort are held, if the weather holds," the bluerider explains, with a nod to Siobhan, "The floating dance platform on the lake may be suitable, perhaps?" He glances at Galina a moment, asking thoughtfully, "Mm, I suppose, like dragons, firelizards have their own personalities. How long did it take you to train yours?" The man blinks, though his smile widens a little, "Ah, likely not spiderclaws.. although I'm uncertain what it could be, without hearing it for myself." He nods in agreement with Marika, perhaps noticing her concern, "If you've a free moment later this sevenday, perhaps you could show me where you checked? I doubt it's anything serious.. but.." he offers something more of a smile there. The guard's words about her brother have B'ky pressing his lips together, leaning back against the counter and murmuring, "Livng life to the full?" as if.. that might mean something to him. He goes quiet, then, looking vaguely distracted.
It's a good thing Siobhan isn't drinking anything, or else she would have spoofed it all over herself in a most unlady-like manner. As it is, the beastcrafter half-stifles a giggle, shoulders quaking with the effort to keep in what otherwise might be an alarming amount of noise. "Half of the guard? You don't say. Still, that is an interesting transformation. Perhaps having to work so hard has made him… /appreciate/ his free time?" There is a hint of dubiousness to her tone, but there's sympathy too. For the brother, for Marika? It's hard to tell. Sio looks intrigued at the possibilities of firelizards being trained to fetch and deliver messages, but before the girl can poke more on the subject, B'ky mentions that the lake has a floating dance platform. Winner! "Truly? It's decided then, we'll have our show there… if the weather clears." It is, after all, thick as pea soup with the fog out there, but surely that'd clear. "Oh good," is said towards the idea that it wasn't spiderclaws, but there's still the puzzling question of, if not spiderclaws, then what /was/ down there in the caverns? Color her curious.
Marika repeats "Galina." with a sheepish nod, though likely next time they meet the guard will be back to calling her 'ma'am'. Some habits are hard to break. "They deliver messages too? Hmm, interesting. I wonder what else they can be trained to do." she muses, more to herself than anything. The prospect of time doesn't seem to bother her, nor the fact that she doesn't actually /have/ a firelizard to train. The guard frowns slightly at B'ky, and nods, expression serious. "If you'll vouch for me later, we could check it out after we're done here, sir? Although I do have guard duty on the cavern tomorrow, and a rest day coming up soon, I'd be happy to check on things then." Either 'then', really. "Yeah… my brother, he doesn't do things by halves." she says, with a snort. "Meanwhile, Hemi's just gotten more serious. I offered to bring in his blade, because I knew how much he'd hate to miss training." she grimaces. Though, Marika is forced to admit, "Well… maybe not /half/ of the guard. But some of them stand out more than others. Trainees, mostly." Wasn't she just recently a trainee herself? "Maybe. Guard work is very serious work. Some, not myself mind, but /some/ might call it boring." Although, her tone would seem to indicate that she does hold that opinion.
"They are distinctive, yes. Redwort more than the others, but they all have their peculiarities." Galina remains at the counter while she waits, arms folded loosely about her midsection. A look askance is given to B'ky and then she answers with a plain, matter-of-fact, "Their training is a continual work in progress, however-" some quick mental calculation is made "-the training time required was variable. Between six months to a turn and a half to teach them obedience and basic commands." A glance is given to Marika, unreadable and empty as ever, as she intones, "Yes, they can deliver messages." But she'll not touch on the woman's wondering, instead turning her attention back to where the smith had departed to. Silence ensues on her part once more shortly after.
"I would certainly hope not," B'ky murmurs, with a slight smile, on replacing half the guard with animals. He shakes his head a little, then turns a bit to nod to Siobhan, "Hopefully, the weather will improve. Although.. there is the dance hall.. it's a rather large cavern. I'm sure the 'hawks would be able to fly indoors?" He doesn't sound certain, though Marika's offer her him tilting his head to consider her. "Hm, if you've the time? I'd certainly vouch for you. Although I don't wish to keep you from your duties. Whenever you have a moment, should be fine. I'm.. not on active duty this sevenday," giving his arm in the sling a brief look. He doesn't comment further on the guards, although there is a very faint, tugging smile at that last part, about it being boring. He turns to listen to Galina's answer about her firelizards, nodding somewhat, "Ah, I see.. I imagine it must depend a great deal on the personality of the firelizard." He might have gone on, but one of the smiths has returned with papers for the clipboard. B'ky has a quiet word with the crafter, before setting the reciepts on the clipboard.
Siobhan lifts both of her brows, acknowledging Marika's thoughts on her brother, but it's Hemi that she focuses on. "Hate to miss training? Really? I mean… yes, it is very serious business, especially when your duty is the protection of others, but it is /work/. I'm not sure which to frown upon, this Hemi or your brother." Neither, really, but it's certainly food for thought for the beastcrafter. A thoughtful look is aimed Galina's way. "Are they loyal, firelizards? I mean… are they protective and needy like canines, or are they more like felines: yours, but they'd be just as happy somewhere else as in your lap?" Well, Sio /was/ curious about them. Might as well as someone that had a few, right? As for the weather… "I hope it improves, too. Fog isn't my style. I'd imagine that they'd be fine indoors, though, yes. The dance hall, you say? If it has a decently high roof…" She shrugs and smirks, jangling the glove against her leg again before fully realizing what she was doing. "Oh, shards, the glove. He'll be needing this. I'm in so much trouble." Making a face, Siobhan glances up and waves hastily towards B'ky, Marika, and Galina before darting to the door. "Sorry to run, and thanks! I'll let you know about the aerial display! Nice to meet you!" And with a scuff of boots, she's off!
Marika frowns slightly, and gets to her feet, toying with her staff once more. "I… uh. I probably ought to get back, actually. But tomorrow, sir!" she says, to B'ky, "I'm on guard at the cavern tomorrow, late shift again. If you're free," and her eyes drift back to the man's sling, with a grimace, "I'll be there." There's a slow nod to Siobhan. "Hmm. Well, Hemi means well, he's not so… enthusiastic on his days off." she says, though today isn't one of them. She glances back at the counter, and frowns, deciding to head out without checking if there were any suitable substitute blades. Staff in hand, she heads back to the Weyr proper, likely using the staff to help guide her way in the fog. Useful things, staves.
"They are … unique. Cyanosis is more canine in personality, but the other three are decidedly more on the feline spectrum, barring Redwort's protectiveness." But that's as far as that thought gets before the smith finally returns from the back with a relatively large, hinge-lidded wooden box of some sort. Galina eyes it dubiously, one eyebrow lifting just a touch at the offering of it. As others are distracted or take their leave, the healer is soon among them, bearing her peculiar burden outside, where her runnerbeast awaits.
Collecting his clipoard and tucking it under his arm again, B'ky nods in agreement with Sio about the weather, giving the door a quick glance. "It has a fairly high ceiling," he comments on the dance hall, although then the beastcrafter is rushing out, and B'ky inclines his head with a quiet, "Take care," in farewell. He nods to Marika with an, "Of course," giving the woman a smile, "I'll stop by the cavern tomorrow, then. Take care, as well." B'ky offers Galina a departing nod, having noticed her sneaking out, though he's soon distracted by a smithcrafter, and finally gets to the business he'd come here for - checking shipments and going over receipts.