New Faces in Not-So-New Places. (Open)

[RhiaBlack]

{desc=Jyderin}It was a definite change. Not only was Jyderin now living at the Weyr, he found himself with a completely new set of surroundings as well. Visiting was much different than actually living there, after all, and it had taken a few days - thankfully with Z'dyn's help, fleeting as it was with as busy as the Ironrider tended to be - to get his bearings.

The fact that there had been an enormous Hatching so soon after he had arrived only further added to the excitement. He had never watched a Wher Hatching before, but with the combined clutches, there was a huge need now for new gear, repaired armor, new couch cushions, and the like. A laundry list of to-dos and manifests and orders that he had only just started to make a sizable dent in.

It was a tremendous effort. Existing stores needed to be examined, and either fixed or the leather recycled for something else and new pieces crafted. He was the first of Master Tanners at Dalibor, and surely being in-house for such a large Weyr meant that there was no shortage of work. He would never want for anything to do, which made him exceptionally happy.

Whistling a lament, he straightened his sleeves and the knots on his shoulders. All things told, he hated wearing them. They drew attention, and despite the ridiculous amount of hard work it had taken to get them, there were times that he suspected he was granted false respect for their presence. It was easier to tell what people thought of someone when there was nothing to influence that first impression.

Z'dyn had joked passively with him that maybe he would Impress a Wher while they were watching a future Hatching. The thought almost horrified Jyderin, given there was so much work to do; almost, given he had been so very lonely since his wife and son had passed. With any luck, being at the Weyr with Z'dyn would quell some of that, but he found it hard to fathom he could devote the time to raising a Wher if there was so much to do around here.

Besides, he had told Z'dyn, Whers didn't Impress old men like him. They had talked about a half-dozen things in the time he had first arrived, while his son was taking him on the grand tour, so to speak, of his new home. The least of which was the potential for his father to be pulled in to help with someone's Flightlust. Something Jyderin wasn't opposed at all to - it was part of Weyr life, and any man or woman of age around here had to be prepared for that calling, if it ever arrived. The prospect, however, still weighed on him. He regarded the Spousal ring on his finger with a measure of sadness, but it was forced away in favor of breakfast.

Food was the great mediator. Something he had taught his sons from an early age. It was hard to be angry at someone with a full stomach, even harder to yell with a mouthful of something. Chewing gave the mind time to think - process, register, and finally come up with a respectful but pointed reply. Hungry people were more often the most hostile, he'd discovered.

That being said, he hadn't yet met many of those who knew his son. Fewer still who knew his father still lived, and yet even fewer who knew he was here. A short and somewhat curt greeting had been delivered to Nara, at the behest of his Z'dyn, but otherwise none but the necessary persons had been notified. For all she seemed to be malicious towards him, Jyderin was interested in speaking with Nara's father, Naras. One was never fully a Master in anything; there were always new things to learn, new things to perfect, and his social skills felt a bit lacking in this new place.

Who knew. Others may show up, and he might get to know more than just one new person. With the Weyr seemingly up-in-arms over D'lios, however, it made him nervous. Did they all think Westerners were like that? Did they think the same thing about Z'dyn? What sort of perception would they have for him?

All things that made him think, no less, as he continued his whistling; onward into the kitchen. Drudges received a warm greeting, before he pilfered breakfast and made his way out to find a seat. There weren't many in the Hall - he'd come a bit late, after all, given there were some extra holes in his eyelids he had to investigate. Pesky holes. The extra sleep had been nice - welcomed, given how late the night prior he had been up talking with Z'dyn.

Plopping down into a vacant space, as there were many, he dug into his plate with a much more polite and well-mannered vigor than his son tended to show. Z'dyn had been more Drudge-mannered, so he was a bit sloppier than his father. Something Jyderin intended on fixing soon enough, along with some other annoying habits Z'dyn had. Like how he dressed. Grumble.

[Kiran]

Imber was the exact opposite of a new face. She had wandered the halls of the weyr since she could toddle, and before that had been carried around the hallways in a sling. She knew every crack and crevasse of the regular hallways and rooms. Those never changed, always eternal, silent until awakened by the breathing and speaking and life of the people that lived in them. The Weyr was eternal.

It was the people in them that changed. New ones came, old ones left or died. Plenty of people came and went over the Turns. Imber knew that she was merely one of them, a mere spark of life that would burn and then disappear. Just like her parents. Just like her brother. The only thing she didn't know was when that would happen. Dark thoughts for an encroaching nighttime. Nighttime brought them out the most. There were few things that Imber could do to fend them off except to drown them out with whatever was handy. Sometimes she went people-watching, looking for those in need. Sometimes she crushed herself in chores that weren't necessary but kept her hands busy. Still other times she proceeded to go to the dining hall. It seemed the most appropriate at this point, as it was dinner time and her stomach had let out a small growl of hunger.

She sighed. So unnecessary, really, but it had to be done. So off she went, grabbing a few meatrolls and tubers and a mug of water instead of klah. Perhaps if she actually slept tonight things would look brighter in the morning.

Imber's eyes scanned the people gathered in the hall as she then looked for people to sit with. If she thought that she could handle the aloneness that gathered in the corners of the weyr she would have braved the empty rooms and eaten by herself. given the darker nature of her thoughts Imber decided against it. No, she would sit among the vibrancy that rolled off the people eating here and drink it in. Erase the emptiness that had started creeping into her own mind. It was the most practical course of action, all said and done. Her dark orbs caught sight of a man that she hadn't met before. Seen, most certainly, she saw everything as she crept and suck through the caverns and watched over the people living there.

But he was new. Imber didn't know what it was like to be new, but she had seen how others had reacted to being new. No matter how old someone got, it seemed that they were often lonely. Lonely perhaps not in the way she was, but lonely all the same. Perfect. She could sit there and help him, her favorite pastime. And he could drive away her loneliness for a short while. Imber slunk over and sat across from him, a little at an angle so that she didn't have to look him directly in the eye. So he didn't have to look her in the eye, either. A slight shift as she grasped her meatroll before she let her gaze flicker up and around the man. "Evening."

[RhiaBlack]

Jyderin hadn't been honestly paying much attention as far as specifics went; not focused on the details for once so much as he was on the general atmosphere of the Dining Hall. It was cold now, and most people were inside when time didn't mandate them otherwise. He had picked up that there were more people among them, though nobody said anything to him or sat close to him. Which was fine.

Z'dyn was doing patrols - even Kings still had duties to maintain, still had to do the same share of work as any other rank and color in this Weyr as far as the basic chores and rosters of to-do lists were concerned. Jyderin would be on his own tonight, and part of him felt that pang worse now than it had been when he was at the Hold. Though with the number of people who were anti-D'lios now, it seemed that those people also were almost anti-Western. It made him a bit nervous to tell people where he was from, for all the chance that they might think him some malicious person not to be trusted.

He frowned slightly, chewing over a piece of wherry with a sigh. He really needed some other sort of hobby, or someone to talk to outside of his son. Well, there was Sora, but she didn't always come by. At least he felt useful in helping her to feel better, but cold nights like this one tended to remind him all too vividly of what he lost.

A hard swallow, before a voice startled him from his thoughts.

"Oh! Pardon...good evening, I...was not expecting company, I apologize. My mind tends to wander when there's not someone here to speak to."

He rose out of habit, though not completely standing - mostly out of etiquette, because he hadn't been born in a stable with the door open and no manners. When she sat, he settled back down, and he shifted his plate and mug of Klah to make sure they weren't in the way; though he was still slowly picking away at them.

"Frightfully cold night out there, isn't it?" He offered a freshly-wiped hand her way, "Jyderin. It's a pleasure to meet you, madam...."

[Kiran]

Imber nearly chuckled when the man rose for her. 'It's fine. I'm sorry for interrupting you, you seemed to be deep in thought. You don't have to make small talk if you wouldn't care to. I'm not that important, you don't have to stand for me or the like. I'm merely a Weyrling, and one for a black." It was kind of him, however, and Imber did appreciate that. It was rare that anyone acknowledged her, really. Though she did prefer to be shunted aside a bit, being the center of anyone's attention was uncomfortable. She shifted slightly, grasping her own mug of klah and sipping at it.

"Imber. And I suppose it is. I don't mind it so much anymore. I used to be a dual candidate, so I've been out on nights worse than this one. You get used to it. It's switching between the night and the day that can make it strange, since the temperatures are so different. But I admit, since I ended up Impressing a dragon this last time the nights have certainly begun to seem colder since I'm no longer awake and out during them." A cold, clinical explanation of the objective 'cold night' and how it applied to her. All the same, the candidate reached over to shake his hand as well, her fingers as yet still clean from not touching her food. "It's nice to meet you as well, Jyderin."

Her eyes roamed over the man as he say there. He looked awfully familiar, though she was certain he was new. His name hadn't been on many people's lips before this last week. His arrival was cause for a hesitant stir among the candidates due to the upcoming hatching. Yes, familiar indeed. He looked terribly similar to an ironrider around the weyr. Imber tilted her head and peered curiously at him, her gaze becoming penetrating as she sought out the answer to her question. "You are the new Master Tanner, correct? A lot of candidates are considering whether they should come to you for armor for future hatchings, given what happened at the double one. What would bring you to a weyr, though? I'm sure that there is plenty of use for leathers here, but to have a master is quite unexpected."

Indirect, certainly, but a way to get out his reason for appearing here instead of anywhere else. And if he did have a relation to a Rider it would most likely come out then, as it would be a link to coming to a Weyr, and this Weyr besides. Her fingers set down the mug of klah and began picking hesitantly at the food in front of her, grasping bits of this and that to eat. She made sure to do so neatly, as usual, not wishing to make a spectacle of herself.

[RhiaBlack]

"Your position here is more important than mine, it's quite all right," Jyderin spoke up honestly. "I may be a crafter, but being one isn't going to protect Pern from Thread, is it?"

He offered a kindly grin, slacking up a bit in the devouring of his meal to make with a bit more polite conversation. Z'dyn hadn't inherited his father's love of talking, no, not at all. Jyderin's forearms rested on the table, as he let her get settled in before he picked things back up. It gave him the chance to pilfer another bite from his plate, as well.

"I am always up for small talk, don't you worry a bit. One of the things I enjoy, meeting new people and finding out about them, so to speak. I don't like to pry too much, but I'm still a bit new to the Weyr, so still in the process of learning who does what and who's who around here."

He understood cold nights. He essentially lived in the Lower Caverns, and there were nights where he suspected it was colder in the unforgiving stone walls than anywhere else in the Weyr, even up in his son's personal weyr with Baihujinth. Jyderin absentmindedly turned his espousal ring on his finger, the thought of a distinct lack of warmth pulling at him for a moment or two. Winters were always the hardest. At least he had a bunch of good furs, so it tended to hold in the heat and make it quite comfortable, unless he got out of bed.

"It does always seem that way, I agree. Nights here in the Winter thus far, they're much colder than they were back at my home hold. I'm not sure if it's just the fact everything here is stone, I'm not certain. You would think stone would hold warmth, but there's days it's a struggle to get out of bed from the lack of it down there. The lower caverns, that is."

Not to mention the emotions that came with it, but he wasn't about to be a buzzkill by bringing up depressing stuff like that. His attention paused at the inquiry; so she had spotted him out, after all. He resisted the urge to frown. At least she didn't seem intimidated by his knots, which was always a plus. Granted, he had busted his backside to work his way up to Master, and forewent a lot of important life events to get there, but he wasn't the sort to have a braggart's nature. He didn't like people judging him by the knots, and not the mirth of his character. Something they tended to do when he wore them.

"Master Tanner, yes, ma'am." Another mouthful of wherry, before he wiped his mouth to keep the gravy on it from running into his goatee. Faranth forbid he stain any of the salt in his salt and pepper facial hair brown. Z'dyn would never let him hear the end of it. "My son said that there weren't any here, and I suppose my constant ribbing about not seeing him as much anymore, since Threadfall's been started, finally ended up in his telling me that I should leave the Hold and come here to work. There's no shortage of things to do, at any rate. I get to continue my craft, help the Weyr directly, and spend time with my son all at the same time. It works out for everyone, I'd suppose, but learning about new people and places is always hard."

Jyderin shifted in his seat, before he took a mouthful of Klah to wash down a particularly thick bite of wherry. He wiped his mouth again, and sighed.

"Admittedly, people don't seem to be as willing to come up and say hello as you have. I suspect the knots deter them, sometimes I wish I could get away with not wearing them. I've 'forgotten'," Jyderin made air-quotes with his fingers and a sly smirk, "...a few times, but someone always seems to point it out. The last thing I want to do is find myself on the Senior Weyrwoman's bad side, after all. So alas. By myself most of the time. I don't mind all the time, but sometimes it gets particularly lonely down there. I don't have any firelizards or pets, and no Wher or Dragon, and then Z'dyn seldom has times he's not Threadfighting or doing patrols and such."

He realized the weight of his not-so-much-complaints-as-resentments, and shook his head.

"I'm sorry, I'm sure you didn't come over here to listen to an old man complain about not having any friends. I'm sure that sounds terribly depressing." He shifted a piece of wherry around on his plate, before skewering it, and then cutting off a piece of tuber to join it. "You said you're a Blackweyrling...what is your dragon's name? Sometimes I find myself envious of those who have Stood. It seems like quite the exciting thing."

[Kiran]

"It might not be as direct as fighting Thread, but without our gear we wouldn't be able to ride and defend Pern. In that way, Tannercraft is as important as being a Rider. Besides, I am not even a proper Rider yet, while you are a Master. That means you are due your proper respects." She was modest, both believing the words she said and embarrassed by his regard. She wasn't that important in the grand scheme of things, not in her opinion.

Smalltalk did bother her, she preferred to be silent, but her desire to help was warring with that. He was new, he didn't know many people, he was probably lonely.... Imber was compelled to speak on his terms. It was getting easier and easier, what with needing to go out and about to find company for her and Hikkikoth, but all the same it was a never-ceasing war in herself. She had been alone for so long...

And now-w-w it is-s both of-f us-s-s, ImberM-mine, a dark voice whispered to her. Reluctantly. Less reluctantly than when they had first Impressed, as he was clinging to her as a rock with all the new interactions, dreading the others that insisted on being his friend. All the same Hikkikoth would have been happier if it truly was the two of them. Why did they need anyone else?

Imber sighed. She would have to get him out once more, soon. He was being grumpier than usual with the coming of the winter and the darkening of the skies. Shaking off that thought the weyrling paid closer attention to what the man was saying to her. A smile played at the edges of her lips as he took the bulk of the conversation for a while. It sounded like he was glad to be here, at least, for the most part. For the most part.... But not all. "Hikkikoth. I Impressed him at the dual hatching. It was.... close to the end. I was lucky enough to miss the excitement that the iron wher brought to the Sands. Exciting is one word you could use for it." Her expression had gone serious, the smile gone. Exciting, indeed, what with the brutal death and injuries that had accompanied the hatching. "I'm glad I did, but truly not all hatchings are happy things."

As neutral as she was on the idea of death itself, she had still been saddened by the losses suffered by those she had seen go between, whether they were human, wher, or dragon. Imber glanced away for a moment before looking back at the Master Tanner. "For what it's worth, I don't believe it is the knots that are the issue. I believe that there are several candidates that are unsure of whether to ask for armor for the next hatching. Of the last three dragon hatchings, two have garnered a death of a candidate.... weyrling in one case, I believe... but because of how delicately dragonets must be handled they are wondering if it would be worth the trouble."

She picked delicately at the meatroll in her hands, her last statement bringing her back to the emotions she had felt during the hatching. The emptiness. The acceptance of leaving the world. She had been fully prepared to lose her life and join her family Between. Yet she hadn't, and had garnered a new companion instead. Imber's fingers burning on a particularly hot bit got her attention back to the present with a frown as she stuck them in her mouth. "Sorry, need to pay better attention to what I'm doing. I believe I was saying it wasn't the Master's knots? Yes. Not only the Candidates, it's rare to have any newcomer that isn't a Candidate. Master Crafters? Unheard of. Even Master Harper Naras is an oddity here, though he is a wherling now. I'm sure that if you give it enough time the riders will wander into your shop and make friends soon enough."

A dart of pink from the corner of her eye garnered her attention and a small smile. Lovely was wandering among feet and other pillies and pets besides, a wandering dance of happiness as usual. "For what it's worth, I do not have a pet either. I happened upon a hatching while I was here and gained a friend." Lovely slowly swayed to a stop beside Imber, her feelers gently waving as though in a breeze. Trrriiiillll! She had been away for a while and had lovely new stories to tell! But who was this gentleman? Someone new?! Trrill! Lovely wandered over, running over his foot as she examined him more closely, talking. "This is Lovely. She's friendly, if a bit fickle to most everyone but me." Her pillie got a genuine smile from the girl, who more than ever appreciated the lighthearted adoration that she showered on everyone. Including Hikkikoth.

"There are plenty of hatchings about, if you're willing to go looking. I'm sure you'll pick up a flit in no time." Imber hadn't, but she was perfectly happy with Lovely. She was the perfect balance to Hikkikoth. "Lots of riders make announcements, as well, since their riders don't want to end up with entire fairs of their own when their flits lay eggs. It's rather nice that way. I don't have one, myself, Lovely was an accident when it came to pets, because I figured I wouldn't need one. But she helps a lot." Her gaze sharpened on the man. "Though that wouldn't count for wher hatchings. Do you think you would Stand for one, if you get that lonely?"

A more blunt, direct question but one that was worth asking, in her opinion. She had been lonely. She had been lonely and alone of her own choice, however. But Hikkikoth had found her regardless. But Imber hadn't been Standing simply because she was lonely, she had a purpose to it. What about this man?

[RhiaBlack]

Jyderin was no stranger to having people semi-zone out around him. It was a side-effect of coming to talk to him, he supposed. Sora tended to do it a time or two in the last handful of times she'd come to talk to him; his words seemed to inspire thoughts in others. Perhaps something he would have been marginally proud of, if of course it wasn't for the fact he had no idea what those thoughts were of. Most of the time, nobody admitted them. Even Z'dyn wasn't immune to his father's sense of wisdom and sagely advice.

"I would hope, if anything, that being witness to such a travesty as that would encourage them to want to protect themselves. After all, there isn't a rule against it, so with the Hatchings seemingly - from what I've heard, mind, I've only seen a handful thus far - becoming more violent, it would make sense that we don't lose any more Candidates than fate would hold purpose for. Death is a sad thing, and it seems more so for those so young."

It broke his heart, truthfully. Watching young lives so full of promise being cut so short. It almost didn't seem fair, but occasionally he had to remember that it was a risk they signed up for, when they agreed to come to the Weyr. There was always a risk.

He nodded softly, prying apart a meatroll and letting the steam cool from the heated center. As the Pillie wandered across his foot, and seemed to almost inspect him, he peered rather curiously down at...Lovely? Her? Yes, indeed, Imber said it was a she.

Jyderin hadn't ever really seen a Pillie up close like that - most of those he knew were seen at a distance from others, and none had ever ventured down into his workspace or close enough to actually touch him. He didn't seem creeped out by her, but at the same time there was very little desire to touch her. Waterborne bugs were curious things, and he wasn't sure what precisely would be found as offensive contact or not. Better not to touch her and avoid doing something wrong, until he could ask his son about them.

"She seems quite that, lovely. A fitting name for her, and a very pretty shade of her....shell, is it? I know very little about them, still learning about much of Dalibor's other species of pets and what not." He chewed over a piece of meatroll, rinsing it down with a mouthful of Klah. "I've yet to catch any firelizard Hatchings, thus far. I always seem to be working when they happen, but a few people have promised to tell me if they hear of any, so I imagine I'll end up with at least one sometime soon."

Ah, there it was. Z'dyn had been pretty incessant on pressing the older man into Standing for Whers, but truth be told, Jyderin wasn't too sure if he would make Wherhandler material. Let alone the fact that his work with the Weyr's Tannercraft needs would be severely impacted by Wherlinghood. On some level, he could potentially talk to Audren and see about his 'chore slots' being his craftwork for the Weyr, but truthfully it hadn't really occurred to him.

"Truth of it is, my son has been pressing me about it. I'm not really sure if I want to, but then again I imagine if it's meant to be, one will find me in the Stands like the case was with Naras. If it happens, I will have to make the best of it. I don't honestly know how it would affect things. Z'dyn enjoys coming to help me work, but if I had a Wher, I'd be consigned to night candlemarks, which would impact his sleep. My Z'dyn does enjoy his sleep, and I can't see peeling him away from that for the sake of a hand with my craft. And then there's the matters of how Wherlinghood would impact my capacities to fulfill my job here at the Weyr. Then again, I suppose it will meter out a bit when I've finished what is backlogged, which will be more than done by the next Hatching, I think."

He shrugged softly, not a gesture he tended to make for the sheer fact that it didn't seem an acceptable response, but at that, it had its place sometimes.

"If it happens, there is little I can do about it. I would rather become a Wherhandler than see a Hatchling between, and it isn't as if I can go 'no, I'm not interested' if one of them does chance to show up in front of me. But even at that, I imagine I'll at least end up with a flit. Z'dyn's Pink, Keeidra, she tends to come keep me company when Z'dyn is patrolling, or running drills and such. She's pleasant company, but I suppose it's different when they're actually -yours-. What is it like, being bonded to them? To a Flit, and to a...Pillie, and a Dragon? I've always been a bit curious, and even at that I imagine hearing about it from someone isn't the same as actually having it happen. It's interesting and somewhat thrilling a prospect, all the same."

He politely chewed another section of meatroll, a second pulled apart so that the middle would cool, while he dealt with the one he was currently eating. Another mouthful of Klah, before he added.

"I apologize if I seem overly chatty or curious. I don't often get to meet actual Weyrlings or Riders and such, so it's a bit of a new thing for me. Not to mention I don't often get time to talk to anyone, and conversation makes such a great side dish to a proper meal."

[Kiran]

Imber hummed slightly at Jyderin's hopes about the next Hatching. "I think what truly bothered some was that one of the Candidates mauled last time... She had been wearing armor, and seemed singled out because of it." The girl had been almost right in front of Imber. The images of the girl being ripped to made the corners of her mouth tighten. It could have so easily been her. But it hadn't been, and the girl hadn't died, but it was still unnerving. Her attention was drawn from it by Lovely, who had moved from Jyderin's feet to her own. Imber picked the pillie up and put the pink on her lap, where Lovely curled up contentedly.

"Thank you. I grew up here, and know a lot of people are startled by them, but they are usually fairly gentle creatures. I'd say they're like... Less-intense versions of flitts. Flitts are a touch more intelligent and can do a few more things because of flying and Between, and the bond is stronger, but pillies are good companions as well. At least, that's what I've garnered from the people who have them. Mother and Father did before they died but the two they had went feral after that." She took another bite of her meatroll. "Lovely likes people, so I might be able to start using her to send messages. She might not be able to Between instantly but she can crawl through the tunnels well enough."

She continued to nibble at her meal as Jyderin spoke of the pros and cons of going into the wher program. "It sounds like a tough decision. But if there's a wher for you and you happen to be in the Stands for it, then I'm sure it will find you and make the decision that much easier. Especially as it seems that going into the Candidacy would only interfere with your work and being there for your son. As for what being Bonded is like...." Imber chewed on her lip for a moment as she contemplated that question. "When my brother was still alive, there were moments where we could tell what the other was thinking with just a look. It's like that, except more. I can not only tell what he thinks, but I hear it. Feel it. And Hikkikoth feels them in return."

Her eyes strayed to the tray in front of her. "It's actually rather terrifying, sometimes. I had forgotten-" Cutting herself off, Imber took a sip of her klah. If she had continued with that thought it would have ended with '- what it was like to be close to anybody, and that makes it doubly frightening', but that was too heavy for such a conversation. "-I haven't been that close to people in a long time, so having no choice in having my soul entwined with another is intense. Though I admit being in the program meant that I was asking for it." A wry smile touched her lips.

Imber's gaze went back to the Tanner's. "I don't mind answering. I'm not chatty often, but I've been getting a lot more practice at it. I must, Hikkikoth would be content to keep us isolated in our room all day otherwise. I've ended up seeking out others for company for us so that he will not get caught up in his thoughts like that." She finished her own food but remained where she was, content to stay where she was for the moment. Hikkikoth had fallen asleep, deeper than he had before, and that meant she had some time to herself. "I've not met many Crafters about here. I didn't take one up myself, I knew I wished to be a Rider or Handler since I was young, so I find this to be good as well."

Her fingers cupped her half-filled mug. "So you came to Dalibor to be with your son. But how did you become a Tanner to begin with? I am quite curious." She left the question open so that he could say as much as he wished. Imber had time. And it seemed that it was, indeed, doing him well to be speaking to somebody. Imber liked that she was doing good again. It had been a while since she had felt so useful.

[RhiaBlack]

Jyderin nodded slightly, mouth still full; he swallowed, though seemed momentarily taken off-guard by the fact a Hatchling would purposefully attack a Candidate wearing armor. It seemed overly malicious, but given the Hatching they had just attended, he didn't put any measure of viciousness past any infant Dragon or Wher anymore. Especially after what he'd witnessed with that one boy and the Iron Wheret.

Talk about malicious. Jyderin frowned, wiping his mouth with a napkin and exhaling a rather heavy sigh.

"I suppose you're right. It seems...almost otherworldly, that they would single out someone who wore something purely as precaution, but after what we saw out there..." He gestured slightly, before spearing another piece of meatroll with his fork, "...I don't put anything past them anymore. There was speculation for a while that it was the smokeweed antidote that caused the violence, but I don't think anyone will ever know for certain. I imagine having both species on the Sands didn't help, either. Z'dyn tells me Whers like darkness, and they get rather upset if it's not as much."

He seemed confused by the prospect of anything sharing his mind. Perhaps something he didn't care to encounter, perhaps not; Jyderin was just as good at hiding the truth of his own thoughts as much as anyone else was. His brows knit together, a mirror seen in his son's own when he was contemplating something complex. Though Jyderin held far more intelligence than his progeny.

"I imagine a test of whether I like it or not will happen when I encounter and perhaps Impress a firelizard. Then again, I suspect if a Wher wants me, then it won't matter if I like it or not. I won't have much of a choice. Ah, well. Something we'll find out if I'm talking to you next time a Wherling, then, hmm? Bah. I can't imagine who'd want a boring old man like me."

Jyderin grinned, shaking his head. There was a near child-like humor to some of his facial expressions, sometimes, while at the same time being almost aged beyond his forty-four turns. He had clearly seen his share of various life events; birth, death, and everything in between. Though he had to admit, the prospect of not having to between to get places with a Wher was a prospective bonus. He wasn't overly sure what he'd do if he ended up with a Dragon. Not that he would. He was far too old, over two decades as much. Nevertheless, the thought of flying amused him. He did enjoy going out with Z'dyn sometimes, when the Ironrider wasn't busy with something else. Time with his remaining family was the whole reason he'd come here in the first place.

"Much the same. Outside of Z'dyn, I can't say I found myself that close to anyone. His mother, Faranth rest her, passed with my other son turns ago. He's all I have left, and sometimes when he's busy all the time, it feels as if I really am alone. I suspect that's part of why he brought me here. Among other things, having people to talk to tends to help matters. There comes a point, especially in my line of work, where being shuttered away is no good. Being isolated is all right sometimes, but when you find yourself constantly alone, it tends to be rather boring. Sadly for me, it...makes me think of times much less happier, and it becomes a detriment. It's good that you push your Hikkikoth into being more social. I enjoy conversations, no matter who it's with - if you find yourself in the Lower Caverns, you should stop by. I'd love to meet this Black of yours. He sounds quite endearing."

Jyderin cut through another meatroll with his fork, mopping some roasted tubers through a bit of gravy before they were joined by a few shreds of the interior of the former. He shoveled the entire mess into his mouth, politely wiping his mouth again before it was washed down with a mouthful of Klah.

"My mother, actually. I am the youngest of my father's four sons; my mother was a Tanner, as was my Uncle. My brothers were more physically active than I was, as far as going out and doing things. I found myself somewhat enthralled with the process of turning a hide into leather, and how many uses it had. Mother took me on as her Apprentice, and things progressed from there." He glanced to the silver band on his ring finger. "I met Z'dyn's mother there, at Cove, after my brothers all grew up, were espoused, and moved to other Holds. Keidia was a Kitchen Drudge, and I remember sneaking into there after-hours just to catch sight of her. She was a few months pregnant with my first son, Z'dyn's four-turns older brother Zadarin, when we were espoused. Four turns after she had him, she gave me Zykeidyn. Z'dyn. Apologies. It's...exceedingly hard for me to call him a name I didn't give him. I should be used to it by now, but it's a bit difficult sometimes."

He almost stared off into space for a moment. Contemplating, but there was pain behind those almost glazed blue eyes, before he snapped back into focus.

"I Walked the Tables for Journeyman knots just after Zadarin's tenth turnday, and they used to sit with me in my shop. I'd watch them while their mother worked, but neither of them picked up the craft. I half hoped Z'dyn would, but he became a Drudge instead, like his mother. Out in the fields. I could never keep that boy inside, he wouldn't have it. Rain, sun, it didn't matter. I half suspected he was a plant sometimes, as much as he seemed to thrive off being out in all of it."

Jyderin sighed quietly, taking another pull off his Klah as he moved tubers around on his plate with his fork. Not so much a loss of appitite, as trying to sort his thoughts, it seemed. Drudge up what he dreaded the most talking about. It caught in his throat, and he swallowed a few times to dislodge the emotional turmoil.

"They passed when Z'dyn was thirteen turns. We left to establish Western after, and I got my Master knots shortly after that. Saw a few others trained up to Journeyman in my time at the Hold, before I came here, and the rest is history."

[Kiran]

Imber merely hummed noncommittally when the Master Tanner contemplated what had made the hatchlings so violent. "I couldn't say. Wher hatchings are usually violent and more than one dragon hatching has had someone else die. It's possible that the smokeweed made it moreso, but how would anyone be able to tell?" Imber shook her head. "I've been Standing since I was old enough to be Searched, and I can honestly say that I don't think there's a whit of difference between smokeweed and not. Light might have made a difference, but couldn't speak to that one, either."

Lovely caught her attention for a moment with a trilling call towards someone else, scuttling out of Imber's lap and towards them. The black weyrling let her, not concerned about it. Lovely always came back, and she would probably see the pink before she went to bed. She caught everything that Jyderin said, however. A chuckle escaped her. "I never thought that a dragon would want me, but I was surprised. And there was one that Impressed Masterharper Naras, wasn't there? I wouldn't put anything past them." Her fingers curled around the cup more tightly, thoughtfully. Yes, they were full of surprises...

"Having people to talk to does help, I suppose." That thought brought a small frown to her face. She hadn't reached out to anyone when her family had died. But then again, she had sought out a dragon or wher of her own. Was that the trade-off? "But for Hikkikoth..." A smile quirked on her lips. "Yes, I'll certainly bring him by. He'll be too big in a few sevendays, though, so I might bring you out to greet him instead." It was good for the black, and what was good for the flit was good for the pillie, wasn't it? "He's not as endearing as I make him out to be, but he's mine, so I don't have it in me to complain too much." Couldn't complain at all, really. She loved him, quirks and all.

Imber let herself get caught up in how he became a Tanner and came to Dalibor. A smile escaped her at how sweet his story of falling in love with his wife was, and her eyes saddened in sympathy of his losses as well. "I didn't take after anyone in my family, for what it's worth. They all died several turns ago, parents, grandparents, brother. None of them rode dragons. I think they'd be proud of me anyway. I hope." The weyrling fussed with the crumbs left on her plate, the mug of klah now empty. "They were all drudges. Didn't have a Trade to pass down, really." Truthfully, the weyrling had never thought or considered a trade. She had always just.... Stood. What else would she do with her life? What other purpose did she have?

The question now made her pause. She had her dragon. And she was training to be a Rider. But there were plenty of other weyrlings that continued with their Crafts well into their weyrlinghood and even pursued their knots afterward. Though she was busy now, Imber would have time to herself at some point. What would she do then? Especially given that Hikkikoth needed to get out and about, and unless she herself did then it would breed an unhealthy desire to stay in and brood in the black. "I might take something up, something to get me outside because of Hikkikoth. I don't know what, though. I never considered it before. It wasn't really an option. But... I suppose it might be now...." Her brow furrowed as she got lost in her thoughts. Stranger and stranger, she might look into doing something with her life beyond Thread. It didn't fall every day and she would need to be out. What else would she ~do~?

Imber shook herself out of it and smiled at Jyderin. "Even if your son isn't interested, I'm sure that there will be someone knocking at your door and asking for an apprenticeship, and who knows from there? We do need Tanners, and I'll be very excited about coming by for my first riding leathers. We start flying in the spring, so I'll be getting my first set then. I have to admit, as often as I stand, it's strange to be at this point of things."

[RhiaBlack]

Jyderin nodded grimly. Indeed, there really was no way to tell. It was just something they had to chalk up to fate - either way, it had made a new strain of color, so that was a good thing, at least. Another benefit to speak to Dalibor's luck with rarities. First twin tans, and now Burgundies to add to the color spread.

"You're right. There's no way to know, all we can do is try and prepare for future happenings that would see us put in the same situation again. Hopefully more Candidates will choose to wear leather armor the next time, and we won't be facing as many brutal maulings or deaths and the like."

Lovely's scampering off drew his attention briefly, before he looked back to Imber.

"I imagine your Black's attitude and such towards you would naturally be different than towards anyone else, but even at that, I'm sure he's just as wonderful as you say he is. Z'dyn's Iron doesn't really bespeak others, but I see how he is with my son, so it's a testament to his will and resolve, in that. He treats my Z'dyn with the respect and such that is befitting him, much as Z'dyn treads him with the same. They are a good pair, and I have no doubt that you are a good pair with your Hikkikoth, too." He frowned slightly, recalling how Nara's father had been Impressed by a Wher. "Yes, I suppose there was. All the same, I imagine they would take far more interest in those on the Sands than those in the stands, but obviously the only limitation is if their Bonded isn't there at all."

He chewed thoughtfully over another piece of meatroll, wiping his mouth with his napkin before another bite was taken. She was making him think. Bringing to light things he truthfully felt more comfortable discussing than simply thinking about. It tended to help, indeed, having someone to talk things out with.

"Some people don't," he admitted. "There are plenty of people here who don't come from craftsman-oriented families, and that's all right. if anything, it makes it that much more special when a fledgeling Rider chooses something to occupy their time. I wish Z'dyn would, though he's busy now, but when Thread finally passes and there is more free time to handle, he's going to be terribly bored. He has an issue with being idle, and I try to warn him that there's not much drudgework to be done when the Weyr already has its share of those." He shook his head slightly.

"Do you have anything you favor, as far as anything that could be applied to choosing a craft? Do you like music, or fishing, or making things, or handling herdbeasts?"

[Kiran]

Imber did hope that the Candidates also came forward on asking for armor, as a flicker of gladness she didn't have to Stand anymore ran through her. She let her fingers trace a few other patterns in the crumbs and blushed slightly when Jyderin said that he thought they made a good pair, even if Hikkikoth was different towards others. "It's not that, he treats me about the same as he does everyone else, but..." Her brow furrowed slightly. "I think you'll understand when you meet him." That was the simplest thing she could say about it and it eased her thoughts considerably. Some things, like Hikkikoth, were not complicated, and that meant she didn't have to fret about it.

Imber tilted her head slightly, daring to speak on something else. "You love your son a lot. I think it's very kind and brave of you to uproot yourself to come here. I'm sure that even if he doesn't desire to take you up on your craft that he adores and respects you all the same. I'm sorry that he doesn't wish to follow your footsteps, but it sounds like there are other things that he has gained from you that are just as good to pass down." She hoped it wasn't overstepping herself. Crafts were crafts, one could have one or not. But other things like respect and kindness and patience were more important to being a ~person~, and Jyderin seemed to have no shortage of them.

Imber rather wished that she could recall more of her family. She could barely recall what any of them were like, and those memories were the nostalgia- and horror-tainted images of her childhood. If she could meet them now, with the eyes of the almost-adult she was, what would she find? In some ways, Imber was grateful. The weyrling hoped that she had grown into a likeable, good person in and of herself. If she knew that her family was full of terrible people, she would have felt badly about being related to them. This way she was free to imagine them as she liked based off of the bits that she scraped from her past.

A chuckle escaped her at the Tanner's observation about his son. "It will be many years before Thread stops falling yet," she countered. "Perhaps by then he'll have picked something up out of necessity or accident, like Beastcrafting if someone loses a runnerbeast to him in a card game or somesuch." A light shrug accompanied her words. It was a silly idea, but not entirely unthinkable.

She hummed thoughtfully at his question. "I'm no musician or fisher, but I do like crafting. I mean, I've done work around... Helped a few people do things. Helped make thread, or baked bread. I have to admit, I like the kitchens a good deal." They were close to the outside, so Hikkikoth could be out there while she was doing it, and baking itself... There was something soothing about the repetition of making bread, and how sweets made everyone relax and feel better. It was something that Imber had noticed before but hadn't the inclination to pursue before.