A Quiet Young Man

Writers: Aaron, Devin
Date Posted: 12th March 2024

Characters: B'lyse, R'lor
Description: Blue (Jarril) endures the required one-on-one meeting with a weyrlingmaster.
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 8, day 9 of Turn 10
Notes: Mentioned: Pierce (Fettonen)

R'lor

When the appointed time came, Blue reported to the weyrlingmaster's
office. He was practically trembling with nerves. He had nearly a
decade of practice with lip reading, but it was not exactly a precise
science. He would hear the man speak, of course, but even with no
other noise to interfere, he would not be able to make out anything he
said by the sound of it. Just a soft, muffled tone. He would just have
to do his best to make this work. After all, it had worked on the
Searchrider.

He knocked and waited what he assumed was enough time for R'lor to
have told him to come in, and then he entered and stood before him.

"H-hello, sir." His accent was peculiar, but it was not entirely
attributable to his deafness. He had grown up on Leeward Lagoon's
island, and folks from there already had a noticeably different accent
from mainlanders. This fact was enough to deflect suspicion for most.
"You asked to see me?"

"Yes, Blue. Please have a seat." R'lor gestured to the chair on the
other side of the desk. The boy had an unusual name, but maybe his
parents were just eccentric.

Blue glanced at the chair. Then back at R'lor. Then back at the chair.
He was certain the man had asked him to sit down. So he did. He sat on
the edge of the seat and then stared at R'lor.

"This is an informal meeting, so don't worry too much about it." R'lor
thought the boy might be nervous. "I like to meet with all the
Candidates to get a sense of what they're like. Hopefully one day soon
you'll Impress, and I'll already have some familiarity with you."

Blue squinted as he stared at R'lor's lips. Don't worry. All the
Candidates. What they're like.

"Yes, sir." When he was not sure what else to say, ‘yes, sir’ or ‘yes
ma'am’ were usually a good bet.

"How are you settling in so far? I know Weyr life can take some adjustment."

How are you? I know Weyr... Adjustment? Was he asking if he needed
anything changed? His accomodations were the same as everyone else's.
He could not imagine what else he could possibly ask for.

"I'm good, sir," said Blue. "I don't, um. Need anything special?"

"All right." R'lor nodded. "Let me know if you need anything. It says
here you don't have a Craft. The Weyr has many opportunities, and I
encourage you to explore any Crafts that might interest you."

Craft. Weyr. Opportunity. Explore Crafts. He was definitely suggesting
that Blue think about a craft, which was one of the things Pierce had
briefed him about how to respond.

"Pierce apprenticed as a smith once. He said he would help me meet the
smiths here. Is... that what you meant?" asked Blue.

R'lor brightened. "Ah, the smith Craft! I was smith trained myself.
I'd be happy to introduce you to the smiths."

Well, that had certainly made him happy. Smith Craft. I was. He was a
smith once, just like Pierce. Happy. Introduce. He wanted to be the
one to do the introduction? Or he was happy that Pierce was going to
do it?

Well, when he was not sure...

"Yes, sir."

Well this young man was certainly not the chatty type. "I'm
unfortunately busy today, but maybe I could introduce you tomorrow?"

Today. Maybe. Tomorrow. Was he asking when Blue wanted to meet them?

"A-any day is good, sir."

"All right. No need to be nervous. And you can explore other Crafts as
well, if you have any interest. You don't need to choose anything
right away." R'lor made a quick note on his to-do list.

Nervous. Explore other crafts. Choose anything. Well, which was it?
Was he going to meet the smiths, or was he supposed to explore? Blue
huffed. He was missing something, but he could not get frustrated over
it. That would just be suspicious. He would just have to roll with
whatever R'lor expected him to do.

"Thank you, sir."

"Is there anything you'd like to speak with me about? Any questions?"
R'lor asked. Maybe Blue was nervous, maybe he was shy by nature.

Any questions? Pierce had told him to keep his head down. Any
questions he had, Pierce would answer.

"No, sir. Thank you, sir."

Well, R'lor at least had a bit of time with him and a plan to set him
up with a Craft. Best to let the poor lad go. "All right, Blue. It was
a pleasure to meet you. You may be dismissed."

Pleased to meet you? Was he done?

"Thank you, sir. Pleased to meet you, too, sir." He stood up
tentatively, watching R'lor's face. When he reached his feet without
receiving an objection, he offered his hand to shake.

R'lor shook his hand warmly. "Have a good day."

Last updated on the March 14th 2024

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A Quiet Young Man