We need to talk (Kireon)

[Maggie]

Kaydian took a deep breath as he scurried down the hall towards the candidatemaster's office. He had been doing well, in the last few sevendays, but still, he felt the need to keep up the regular talks he had with Yusk. The wher's soothing guidance reassured him that he was doing better and that he wasn't going to be sent back to Bitra Hold.

He knocked on the door, putting his thoughts in order. He liked having things in order. He wanted to tell her about the fact that the headwoman was letting him back in the kitchen again. He wanted to tell her all about how nice and tidy he had made the pantry. Also... He paused. He did want to tell her about thee two strange holdless sisters. The ones who had asked him questions without saying too much. They made him just a little uncomfortable and he needed Yusk's reassurence that she wouldn't let any of her other "babies" hurt him. There was a look in the older one's eyes, like she might hurt him in ways he didn't understand yet.

He would need to talk to Yuri a bit. He'd been working on that and he was proud that he could actually chatter a bit at the candidatemaster now without having to pet Yusk all the time to soothe himself. "Candidatemaster? It's Kaydian. May I come in?" He was proud that his voice sounded mostly confident, not meek and quavering like it had when he had first arrived at Dalibor. He had sent Flare ahead, of course, just to make sure that the very scary redrider wasn't there. Waroth terrified him and he could never settle around her rider. He could speak to candidatemaster Jasmine, now, although he couldn't quite bring himself to look her in the eye, but the mere thought of Nimara made him tongue-tied. Flare had toldd him she wasn't there, however, and Flare wouldn't lie, so he could go and talk to Yusk in peace.

[kireon]

Incoming baby, Yusk fetch. She informed Yuri happily, relatively ignorant of the tension filling the Weyr since the events of Callistath's Flight and its conclusion. Weyr politics had no effect on her; she knew her job was to mind the babies in her nest, and patrol. That was it. Well, and get all the snuggles and cuddles ever from Yuri and the babies, of course. That was her most important task in the end.


She reared up on back legs, dancing in place for balance for an instant before her front paws thudded into the top portion of the door, closed due to a meeting they'd had with the other Candidatemasters regarding the double hatching that was drawing ever-closer. Yusk hear knock, fetching in moment. She called out to the awaiting Candidate. Her jaws daintily closed around the bolt and tugged up and back, sliding it out of the locked position and into the unlocked one. She dropped down to all fours, pleased with herself, and mouthed the second lock free of its confines to hold in her mouth while she nudged the bottom half of the door free. That was how Yusk answered the door, the top half slowly swinging open, faster without Yusk's encouraging nudge, and looked pleased to see Kaydian as his full self was revealed. Baby need snack? Need get blanket? A pause, her eyes going from a green-yellow to straight green as she perked up. Baby need snuggles? Sing sleep? Yusk good sleep snuggles. Baby go sleep very quick, Yusk know, done before.

Yuri chuckled, the sound low and warm as he shook his head from his position at the desk. "Let the poor boy speak first, Yusk, he can't answer if you keep asking him things." His pushy little baby, that's what Yusk was, and he loved the pale sage little darling more than he had words for. The smile was shared with Kaydian, the stocky, muscular Candidatemaster careful to ease from the stool he sat on behind the desk slowly. There'd been several skittish Candidates as of late, and he'd been careful to take note of which needed caution around, and who to speak with the others about. Menghir had been... difficult, though she had seemed almost okay with him by the time she'd Impressed to quite the lovely brown. "Good evening, Kaydian, what can we do for you today?"

As always, Yuri was perfectly pleasant and soft-spoken, already he was warming a kettle up in case the lad needed tea, or just something warm and simple to sip while he spoke.

Yusk, of course, was right up in the youth's business, already at the young man's side at the perfect angle to get an arm or hand on her hide for the snuggle, shoulder pressing against the dip between his hips and ribcage. How Yusk be help today? She asked, imitating Yuri the best she could with her limited vocabulary and capacity for large words and sentences.

[Maggie]

Kaydian beamed at Yusk, reaching out to snuggle up against her and scratch her eyeridges. "Hello, Yusk," he murmured happily. "And hello Candidatemaster Yuri." He looked over at the candidatemaster, hazarding a smile at him. He was getting used to Yuri, now and he didn't feel too threatened anymore. "I... I just came to talk a bit. I'm feeling a little better, but there's... I'm still... Well I needed to talk." He patted Yusk happily, then turned to Yuri.

"I... I'm scared for this hatching," he admitted. "People keep dying and getting injured and hatchlings die and it's scary." He pressed close to Yusk. "I've been trying to be good. They even let me back in the kitchen to work and I've made a few friends there like Yusk said I should. But sometimes... I still wonder if I'm really supposed to be a Candidate. I keep standing and every time it's terrifying. I don't know how to handle a wher hatching, even though I like whers." He clung to Yusk, now, but he was giving Yuri desperately worried looks. It was progress, from when he had first arrived and would only address the wher, shying away from her handler.

"And I don't know what to think about the hatching," he admitted, slumping in defeat. "I'm scared. I'm really, really, really scared of baby whers. I mean I like whers, but I'm scared of wher hatchings and it's really confusing. I know I'm not smart and not strong and not amazing like other Candidates, but I was starting to get used to classes and Standing and now everything's changed again!" He'd tensed up, the hunch that he was starting to lose now and again when he forgot to be scared, back in full force.