[Candidates] Just Drink It *see note*

[ambigious]

[ooc: pardon Ophelia for being a twit lol XD]

Almost immediately, the young woman felt a stirring in the room, and almost couldn't contain the smile that quirked the corners of her lips. It was clear that her fellow candidates would be pleasant to have around. They all seemed to get riled up so easily. Or perhaps it was because they were all nervous about meeting one another? Well that was just silly. Subconsciously, Ophelia's head turned until her hazel eyes came to rest on Eavan's face. A slim, non-descript brow arched in query as she studied the girl's face. What in Faranth's name was wrong with the girl? She looked positively...childish, with the way she narrowed her eyes but didn't speak a word.

Unfortunately for Eavan, Ophelia was able to catch the tail end of her comment about the cots, and blinked. "Ma'am?" she blurted out, unable to contain herself. She then turned her attention to J'ain, who as of yet had not given her any reason to be rude to the woman. However, as Ophelia opened her mouth to speak the bluerider answered both questions then disappeared, so she let it fall silently shut, her expression brooding. It was not in Ophelia's personality to warrant such high claims of regard where none had been deserved, so she merely shrugged and turned back to Jarim. "U-shaped?" she quipped, and placed her hands firmly on her hips. "That's a silly idea. That would place the cots directly against the outside of the barracks, which is, of course, the coldest part, considering it borders the outside. Extend the idea just a little farther," Ophelia added, and lifted her hands to express the idea with her palms, "into a box towards the middle of the barracks, and you've got the cots touching one another, end to end, to transfer heat along to keep everyone warm. That way, they're also away from the outside of the tend." As she finished speaking, Ophelia moved to start clearing the tent, moving the larger pieces of furniture towards the outside to at least allow for some moving space.

When she heard Kogran speak, Ophelia glanced over at him with a wry smile. "We're making sleeping quarters so you're sweet little bum doesn't freeze. Here," she added, and tossed a sack of furs at him. Hopefully he'd catch it in time. At that moment, J'ain returned from the bathroom and Ophelia's gaze darted over to regard her. "Do you really want us to call you ma'am all the time?" she asked bluntly, her hazel gaze firm and unwavering as she regarded J'ain.

[Snow]

Eavan was quite giddy about the idea to have a sitting place. Up till now she had simply gone to the Living Caverns to read and relax before lights out since sitting in bed to read wasn’t nearly as comfortable. ”Thank you. The crafters, of course, have other more important things to do. Besides this task would be nothing for a few of us candidates to handle.” She said with a pleasant smile, her eyes turning away from Ophelia, pointedly ignoring her for the time being.

She listened to what Ophelia had to say, but did not interrupt the girl. ”That would work fine, except for those whose bunks would be scooted closer to the entrance of the barracks.” Eavan pointed out. ”The U shape idea would work fine, but put the bottom of the U shape opposite the door, close to the cots behind it. That way it’s still not completely next to the outside wall. If we put the sitting area in the middle, then when we do have a lot of candidates the ones sleeping on this side of the area would be pushed closer to the cold entrance. I’d rather have a lot of blankets to cover up with while reading, then sleep in a chilly bed. Though, even here, winter doesn’t last forever. I say we take a vote to see where to put the sitting area. Who knows, it might be better to put it down closer to the bathing chamber.” Eavan argued as she got up to stand by Julim. Since this wasn’t going to be for all of them they all might as well have a say in the matter.

Ophelia’s comment directed at J’ain irritated her. She’d heard her little quip when Eavan had called J’ain ‘ma’am’, but had tried to ignore it. Now she couldn’t remain silent. ”Every rider is different. Some will give you a good smack for not addressing them correctly and some could care less. That’s not important. What is important is to address a rider respectively first and then if they wish to be addressed in a more personable way they can say so.” Her tone was not snide or sarcastic it was simply speaking the truth. There would be no way for Ophelia to cry foul on her for being insulting, though for the life of her, Eavan wanted to smack the haughtiness off of her face. ”Since the question has been raised, how do you wish us to address you Assistant Candidatemaster?” Her question was a lot more polite and respectful than Ophelia’s had been.

[ambigious]

Ophelia paused in the act of lugging a large chest to one side at Eavan's words, her body stiffening ever so slightly with every word that left the girl's lips. The fact that the young woman then stood beside Julim in a show of solidarity piqued something within Ophelia. The display was completely unnecessary, and Ophelia felt as if they were banding together against her idea. Unable to contain herself, Ophelia released the chest and rose to her full height, easily able to either match or tower above the others.

"First of all," she announced in exasperation, her expression annoyed, "if you had the slightest idea of mathematical concepts, you would see that with the box pattern the cots would all be evenly spaced away from the outside of the barracks. So they would all be at an equal distance away from the flaps, so the only real problem I see with the cots near the door is getting quickly to bed after a tiring day of chores." The young woman's hazel eyes narrowed. "I feel that a vote is fair. As long as flattery and foul play isn't involved."

Unfortunately, that was just the side of Ophelia's personality that felt compelled to state her point of view. There was no hint of malice in her being, simply a strength of conviction that held her back straight and her shoulders squared. But when the candidate chose to spoke for the Candidatemaster...it irked Ophelia to no end. Her eyes flashed angrily as she regarded Eavan, studying her with calculating eyes. "I wasn't addressing you," she said, her voice sickly sweet. "You must think highly of yourself for speaking for the Candidatemaster. Do you have some sort of skill that sets you above the rest of us? It couldn't be ingratiation through sweet words whispered with a forked tongue, could it?" It clearly hadn't escaped Ophelia that Eavan was forcing herself to be pleasant despite her true feelings. This irked Ophelia even more. The fact that Eavan had addressed J'ain directly was completely ignored by Ophelia, who continued to stare at the girl with feigned innocence.

[ooc: sorry for stealing a post from someone, guys, but couldn't resist XD]

[azure]

Oh great. Two strong female personalities in such a small group. Cliques forming already. Apparently it was going to be just like home. He'd retreat and let the ladies fight it out but as far as he could tell the reasonable one was standing right beside him. So -

"I don't want to move the beds. Beds need to stay apart and it needs to be easy to see that there is only one of us in each bed. A sitting area up by the door, where the Candidate master can easily see us is what I was thinking. None of us want to be kicked out of the barracks, right?"

They had to be smart enough to understand what he was not saying. Didn't they? Oh well. 'Start as you mean to go on' was the saying. He'd stand his ground and not get pushed around from the start so he didn't end up in fights later.

[Rust]

Kogran smiled at Julim. Helping make a sitting place sounded kinda fun. Not much like chores, but something that he could perhaps have input in, and make something everyone would like. He had paused, still tossing his old leafsack, and tried to think of something helpful he could say. He waited too long, and instead ended up listening to everyone argue. Or "debate," he supposed.

Worse was that he barely had time to drop his homemade ball before Ophelia threw a sack of furs at him, which he did manage to catch. If there was one thing Kogran wasn't incompetent with, it was catching. Sadly, it wasn't an important skill. Alas. Instead of getting in on the fight, Kogran looked down at the bag of furs, and then around at the other candidates. What... what was he supposed to...? If he put it down, would Ophelia kill him in his sleep? He pondered it for a moment before putting the sack down on an empty cot. She could move around whatever she wanted, but Kogran really didn't feel like trying to do a bunch of work when nobody could even agree on what they were doing.

He walked back over to pick the ball off the floor, tucked it under his arm, and glanced up at Julim as he joined the argument. Best to stay out of it. Kogran took a step closer to the crates with the hope of seeing what was inside them.

[Sher]

((I wanted to insert a note to make sure everybody knows - the barracks isn't a tent. The flap in front of the regular door is to keep out drafts. ^_^ The bathrooms are connected directly to it at the far end, and have a sort of primitive running water arrangement when the reservoir isn't frozen solid.))

"All the time? Not really. Just don't forget that it should be ma'am, and Eavan's got the right of it. As to what you should call me, if you feel the need to use an honorific, bluerider is perfectly fine. I rather be called by my name- when nobody's listening that might take offense anyway." J'ain was well content to let the candidates plan the alteration to their space. She took notice of who was first to use a veiled barb, who was remaining fairly objective, who was totally detached. Kogran's toss and catch activity had been swiftly overlooked- as long as he didn't burst it or catch it on fire. Or, Faranth forbid, knock over the alcohol. Speaking of which!

"All right, all right," J'ain said through a chuckle. "You've all got ideas of what should go where and how. But first, I urge you all to take a seat and let me do the work for once. We can all discuss the pros and cons of each possibility as we take refreshments." Of course, she assumed that Kogran was hungry from the way he was sidling up to the crates; they probably still smelled like the foodstuff they'd held not so long ago. Winter was hard everywhere, but the blizzard had really taken a chunk out of the Weyr's food stores.

She glanced back up at the candle as she waited for everyone to take a seat as asked. "Don't make me turn that into an order," she quipped.

[Snow]

Eavan knew that Ophelia was staring daggers at her, but it didn’t matter. The girl was at least bright enough to agree that a vote was the best way to determine where the sitting area should be. The boys seemed to be a bit uncomfortable, not sure what to do or what to say really. Eavan felt partially bad for them, but it wasn’t her fault one of their numbers was a unmannered know-it-all. ”Isn’t that the pot calling the kettle black?” She said in reference to the ‘thinking highly’ remark. If anyone thought highly of themselves it was the one who thought themselves too important to give a proper title to someone who has earned it.

”Last time I checked, treating a person with the courtesy and respect they deserve is called having manners. If such a thing is gained from ingratiation from forked tongues, as you so eloquently put it, then perhaps you should listen to them a little better.” She stared unwavering back at Ophelia. Eavan wondered what dragon thought that a girl like that was suitable for the weyr. Then she thought she shouldn’t be so harsh. The girl could just be scared or lonely, and the only way of her showing it was to be rude. She looked back at the girl and the look on her face instantly made whatever charitable excuse Eavan could think of disappear completely.

Luckily, for all of them probably, J’ain put an end to their little cat fight. At least she did for Eavan. No way was she going to continue an argument when the Assistant Candidatemaster wanted them to sit down so she could start this little meeting. Without wasting another look at Ophelia, Eavan sat down at the table. She hoped that this evening could be turned around into one of more relaxed fun. The tension she and Ophelia had created was almost palpable.

[azure]

Good. He hadn't meant to start anything, just to get a place to sit in here without worrying about waking up anyone.

Julim sat down beside Eavan and relaxed a bit. There was a good chance that he would just make a seating area when everyone else was asleep. He tended to sleep less and less as a hatching got closer. There were too many bad dreams about being left standing if he slept. Too many hatchlings walking by him or trying to walk over him. He'd gotten very good at dodging hatchlings who didn't really notice him on their way to get to their riders.

With a shake of his head he pulled his mind back to the here and now. This was what he needed to focus on and there was always new things to learn.

[ambigious]

Although Ophelia noticed that the other lads looked uncomfortable, that fact didn't particularly bother her. If they brought up a complaint, or spoke up about their opinions, then she would address them. But if they deigned to remain quiet, then that was their own fault and she would not go out of her way to make them comfortable. Her eyes remained focused on Eavan as she studied the other woman, wondering what it was that drove her. Clearly it couldn't be something against Ophelia personally, though it was clear that they differed in more than one aspect; they'd only just met after all, so that possibility was out of the question. What was it, then?

When J'ain spoke up, Ophelia glanced over at her, and her expression actually relaxed. An almost friendly grin widened her lips as she nodded. "J'ain it is then, though I suppose I should call you Bluerider J'ain in the presence of others," she added wryly. The other woman had earned respect from her for not requiring an honorary; in her opinion, people who required honoraries were simply not confident enough in their own abilities to need one, or who simply wanted to flaunt it. But if J'ain was confident enough in her own skin not to need an honorary, Ophelia respected her. When Julim finally spoke up, Ophelia glanced over at him and arched a brow. She understood where he was coming from, and couldn't help but smirk. So the lad had noticed the attractive women he was keeping company with, eh? The young woman chuckled but merely nodded her head. "I see what you mean," she said, addressing Julim. "I had forgotten about that."

After that, J'ain gestured towards the food and drink that Ophelia had noticed upon her entrance. Without much acknowledgement towards Eavan, Ophelia walked over and joined the others at the table, the room fiasco momentarily forgotten.

[Sher]

There were a few things J'ain had developed opinions on thus far. It was going to be difficult to build a bridge between Eavan and Ophelia, but the assistant candidatemaster had known of a few odd pairings before- people that started out hating each others' guts but eventually forged a tolerant (or at least businesslike) relationship. They would have to work together, if it took being assigned to latrine duty together. Kogran seemed to be a bit of a loner, but that might have been due to uncertainty in the current situation. He at least didn't seem to be a heel-licker; look at how fast he'd dropped the bag of furs. Julim knew what he wanted and wasn't afraid to seek it, even when it meant bringing his ideas forward. He seemed almost unaffected by Ophelia, which was downright funny.

And several candidates were, indeed, late. There'd better be a good excuse, she thought grimly. Curfew was curfew, quite aside from this little get-together. She tried not to let the tension tighten her smile too much, but had the feeling that at least one of the candidates present could see right through it. She took up the chilled meat pie and moved around the table, without hurry but efficiently serving a generous slice to anyone who wanted some. Next came the jug of citrus brew. As she picked it up, she raised an eyebrow at the small group.

"I don't know how many of you have felt the effects of intoxication before," she said firmly, "but if you haven't, we'll make this part of your... education. Just drink it." The bluerider pretended not to be watching, but out of the corner of her eye, she was checking to see their reactions as she started to fill their cups.

Away in his weyr, Ansith stirred, the nebulous thoughts beginning to sharpen into coherence, but J'ain soothed him back to sleep with a wash of wordless reassurance. A good thing, too; he didn't much like it when His shrugged off the rules just for a bit of sport.

[Snow]

Eavan gave Julim a smile as he took a seat next to her. She was still a bit livid from the earlier squabble, but as the seconds went past she became more curious as to which of the candidates was going to be late. Curfew was something all candidates were supposed to observe and follow, of course it was probably the one rule that got broken the most. Those that were late had more courage than Eavan did. For one, she’d never be late and for two, they had known about this meeting so it made those that were late either more brave or more stupid.

J’ain began cutting the meat pie and then offered it to those who wanted some. Eavan asked for one since she’d had to skip part of her evening meal because of unforeseen issues. J’ain then pulled out a jug of what could only be alcohol. Eavan did let her face show it, but she was honestly surprised. Alcohol was an even bigger no-no than cutting curfew. She’d seen candidates be severely punished for imbibing and getting tipsy. The fact that the Assistant Candidatemaster herself was the one offering it did nothing to make her feel more relaxed about it.

However, it didn’t seem like she was going to have much choice in the matter. As a child, prior to her becoming a candidate, her mother would let her sip from her wine glass every once and a while. That was turns ago, though, and Eavan honestly couldn’t remember what the stuff had tasted like. ”What sort of alcohol is this, J’ain?” Eavan asked as she picked up her glass and sniffed it. There was a certain citrus smell to it. Without showing too much distress in having to break the rules, Eavan took a sip. Instinctively she wanted to grimace, but she managed to hold the liquid in her mouth long enough that when she did shallow it wasn’t as bad. The burn of the drink wasn’t something she expected and unconsciously she looked in front of her for something else to drink, even though there was nothing else in front of her.

Eavan told herself that no matter what she was not going to drink too much. She knew the effects of alcohol on a person the next day after drinking and had no desire of feeling them for herself. Surely J’ain would be satisfied with them just sipping the drink slowly. At least she really hoped the bluerider wouldn’t make them drink too much. With alcohol involved this evening was certainly was going to be more than interesting.

[azure]

Prinner came through the door, out of breath and sweaty. He had gotten lost, again, and not wanted to ask anyone for directions, also again. This time he had ended up in the Sleeping areas. That had been interesting though. It was warmer back there then it was out here, pity they couldn't have a room back there.

"I'm sorry I'm late" he said, worry putting a bit of an edge in his voice. " I thought I remembered a turn and ended up in the maze of the sleeping areas. There weren't very many people back there now."

He'd shut up now, it sounded like he was making excuses. He hadn't meant to be late though.

He got himself a box to sit on, apparently the meeting involved food! He was always up for food. He burnt it off quicker then he could eat it, usually.

[ambigious]

Even as she sat calmly at the table, Ophelia's insides were churning. A deep and bitter rage was curling through her blood, but she was doing a marvelous job of hiding it. Her expression remained as flawless as glass as she watched J'ain cutting them pieces of wherry meat. For a split second her gaze flickered over and rested first on Julim, then on Eavan. So the boy did have a soft spot for attractive women, eh? Ophelia tucked that bit of knowledge away for later, quickly learning everyone's soft spots, so to speak. But then something happened that both surprised and pleased her: alcohol.

A smirk instantly lit up her face as she glanced over at Eavan. It would be the worst kind of fun to see the prim, respectable young woman tipsy with alcohol. Personally, her anger was too much at the moment for her to be able to drink; she needed to stay in control, so stay calm. If J'ain ordered her to, well...then she would have to deal with the consequences. For the moment, however, Ophelia dug into the meal in brooding silence, her hazel eyes flicking around the room to see who would react to the alcohol.

When the young man rushed in late, clearly out of breath, Ophelia glanced over at him then away. In all honesty, she had tired quickly of the candidate barracks. For the most part, she hadn't found anyone that she found useful, or even intelligent company, besides that Eavan, but they clearly couldn't get along for anything on Pern. So Ophelia began to shift restlessly and glance towards her bunk. At that moment, as the tension in the room died down, Shade slunk forward and laid his lanky body down beside Ophelia. Instinctively, she reached down and began to stroke his soft fur, her anger slowly beginning to subside.

[Sher]

"It's a local brewer's secret, Eavan, made from every sort of citrus fruit found in the South. The man I buy it from won't tell me more than that; he's better known for the drink than his flocks of fowl." The timekeeping candle was steadily burning past the ninth mark, and J'ain couldn't help grimacing at it. Curfew was now past, and that citrus brew was starting to look awfully attractive, though judging from Eavan's face as she tried it, this batch had been brewed stronger than usual. Maybe a few gulps would restore her sense of festivity. She'd just started pouring herself a bit when the leather flap over the wooden door was opened. A dribble missed the cup and spluttered over her hand as she twitched in startlement. Then the bluerider was heaving a huge sigh of relief. Thought we were about to get caught!

This short young fellow that'd come through the door was as much of a mystery to J'ain as Ophelia, and she took a swallow of brew before setting it down and bringing both meat pie and jug of juice to serve Prinner some of each. "Well, you aren't very late yet, and I can understand getting lost. I'll let you off with a warning. This time." Dire consequences could wait for another day. The woman resumed her position at her seat, took another long sip, and sent the vertically challenged guy an impish grin. "That's citrus brew, in case you didn't overhear, and you have to drink what I poured. Stuff's too expensive to waste. Since you were late, we'll make you talk first. Go ahead, Prinner. Tell us your story."

Belatedly, J'ain realized that the canine, Shade, had made his way all the way to his mistress. She supposed that she was going to need to take the girl aside for a little discussion about her ideas for the canine- nearly every animal in the Weyr served a purpose, earning their feed, and if at all possible there had to be something that dog was good for besides guarding Ophelia. The girl's sharp tongue did a fair enough job of that without backup.

After everyone had a chance to introduced themselves, J'ain planned to just come right out and ask them all how many of them had firelizard eggs. It wasn't a bad thing that some (all?) of them did, but just in case any of them hadn't been listening during the candidate lessons, a reminder that hatchlings of all types needed special care would not go amiss.

[azure]

The food and a new type of drink were very welcome, but his story? He wasn't very interesting.

"I'm from Telgar Hold, I was an Apprentice Beastcrafter. Beasts tend to like me and listen to me, it made it easy to get picked for the craft. I liked learning about it and all, its just we are thinning down the herds for the Pass and there is more need for dragonriders then another apprentice.

When the Rider asked me to come here, I said yes - to be in a newer Weyr and to go where I would truly be needed sounded really good after hearing about having to cut the herds and how to make sure the good breeders were under cover and all. It kind of made it clear just how much danger there was, and I'm a really good runnerbeast rider. I'm thinking I might be a good rider for one of the smaller dragons too.

Oh. I have a fire lizard egg. Its a cool looking egg, half gray and half white. I haven't seen many eggs, just read descriptions mostly."

Surely that was enough talking for being a bit late?