It's Still Too Cold

Writers: Devin, Sia
Date Posted: 22nd April 2024

Characters: K'mai, E'kavas
Description: K'mai and E'kavas meet up at the winter lake
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 2, day 21 of Turn 11
Notes: Mentioned: G'zan

K'mai

E'kavas

The winter lake was quiet today, most of the riders using the summer lake as it was considered warm for Dragonsfall. But it wasn't empty. K'mai spotted a familiar brown as he headed toward the water with his bucket of supplies. Sebeth rumbled a greeting as he waded in next to Roquath. "E'kavas!" K'mai waved. "Oh, hi kids!"

Roquath's bath was nearly done now, and E'kavas stood at the shoreline towelling himself off. Roquath rumbled a greeting back to Sebeth as he neared. The brown stood still enough for the kids to clamber onto his back, where they called a hello down to K'mai before he backed off into deeper water and shook them off like they were nothing.

"Hey, K'mai." E'kavas said. "Only us expats using the summer lake these days."

The bluerider laughed. "I'm glad I'm not the only one. My wingmates keep teasing me." He took out his brush and headed toward Sebeth. "Would your kids like to help?"

"Y'know, if you offer G'zan some crackers he stops bothering you." E'kavas said matter-of-factly. "The only downside is that he shows up to eat your crackers."

Ellenico came bobbing back to shore before Kevia did, looking like a drowned rat. "Hey, K'mai! Do you want help with Sebeth?"

E'kavas grinned. "I didn't even get Roquath to ask, if you can believe that."

K'mai laughed and then told Ellenico, "I'd love some help!" Sebeth watched the youngsters with mild curiosity.

"Hurray!" Ellenico said. "Hi, Sebeth." He waded over and reached his hands up to scritch the blue's eyeridges. "How are you doing, buddy?"

There was a shriek and another splash from deeper in the water, and E'kavas turned his gaze away to check that his daughter's head resurfaced. "I'm not getting out of here, at this rate." He said good naturedly to K'mai. "Roquath hates getting out of the water on a good day, let alone when I bring the tiny dolphineers."

"Maybe you can help too, then," K'mai said, grabbing a handful of sweetsand. "The more the merrier." Sebeth crooned happily at Ellenico, leaning into the child's scratching fingers.

E'kavas laughed. "Yeah, maybe I will, once Kevia wades back in. Roquath's watching, but he's not exactly a trained lifeguard either."

"Are you usually more responsible than your sister?" K'mai asked Ellenico.

"Yeah!" Although Ellenico wasn't quick to help either; he gave Sebeth a few more eager scritches before he reluctantly left to dig into the sweetsand too. "I like helping, and I like blues best."

"Chopped liver." E'kavas said dryly. "How's Sabia doing, K'mai? Is she demanding to help out yet?"

"She's demanding, but not to help." K'mai laughed. Sebeth lifted a foreleg so K'mai could scrub around his claws.

"Give her another year. You'll spend twice the amount of time oiling and bathing once she's determined to help."

"Sebeth will definitely enjoy that." The blue loved attention, whether it be from proddy greens or playful weyrbrats. "How's Jevikas doing in the Candidate life?"

"Oh yes, they'll have a great time." E'kavas gestured towards the lake where Roquath and Kevia were still playing. He did frown a little at the mention of Jevikas. "Nothing's come back to me, so I expect he's doing well. He's at the age where 'how was your day' is too personal a question."

K'mai laughed. "Ahh, that age. I didn't really go through that myself, but I know many do." He moved to scrub the other foreleg.

"I remember being twelve. The memory is foggier nowadays, but I remember the general unfairness of the world." He shrugged. " I tried to tell him that there's no rush, y'know, that he should really know he wants it before he Stands. That....did not go well." He didn't much like remembering That Fight. "I was a little older when I started Standing, and that was only because we were all so terrified at the sudden boom in clutch sizes that _everyone_ stood. And that was before we knew that Thread was coming back."

"Yeah, I was still starry-eyed about having a dragon of my own, even when the signs were there."

"I get being starry-eyed. What weyrborn isn't? But twelve is too young to want to join the fighting wings." E'kavas said. "But that just makes him dig his heels in harder. He's just like his other father in that respect."

"Well, he wouldn't actually join the fighting wings until he's sixteen." K'mai grabbed another handful of sweetsand.

"Don't get me started." E'kavas said, though he had started a while ago. "Sixteen is still too young. Apprentices don't walk the tables until what, eighteen? At least? Let's get adults on the Sands and see what the dragons do." He eyed Ellenico, poised as he was on Sebeth's back, scrubbing up a lather.

K'mai shrugged. "Well, it is what it is. All of that is up to the Weyrleaders." Sixteen did seem young, but eighteen wasn't all that much better.

"Yeah, I don't envy having to make that choice. And I don't have a solution. I just wish I could get into his head how big of a commitment a dragon is, and how dangerous the rest of his life is going to be." E'kavas shrugged back in return. "Which is a lot when you're twelve. I wouldn't have listened to me, either."

The bluerider chuckled. "Same here. _That_ phase I did go through, focusing on the joy of having a dragon and not how much work it was going to be." Even before the Pass, caring for a dragon, especially a weyrling, was still a lot of work.

E'kavas nodded. "Well. It's awful of me, but I'm hoping that his dragon takes their time." He had only felt anxiety around the idea of Impressing when he was that age, and _had_ Impressed young. But the clutches had become so large and it was all hands on deck-- more people Impressed than were left Standing.

** You two need to come in soon.** He told Roquath.

There was a flutter of a complaint across their connection, but a begrudging agreement. }: Your little one is starting to get tired, anyway. :{ Roquath replied.

K'mai glanced up to see how Ellenico was doing. Like most weyrbrats, he was cleaning the dragon with ease and familiarity. K'mai shifted around to scrub Sebeth's rear legs. "This beast took a while to find me, might be the same for your son." He smiled affectionately at his dragon.

"Here's hoping." E'kavas said with a shrug. "I'd rather he be a kid for just a while longer."

K'mai laughed softly. "Well, at the next Hatching one of you will be happy, no matter what happens."

E'kavas grimaced. "Yeah, that's one way to look at it." He turned to see Kevia finally splashing back to shore, looking drenched and tired. "Hey, do you mind watching 'Nico until you finish up? I'm going to drop Kevia off at home to dry off. Summer or not, it's still too chilly to stay in wet clothes."

"Sure, no problem. Nice talking with you!"

Last updated on the April 26th 2024

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It's Still Too Cold