Itchy Spots

Writers: Cali, Jane
Date Posted: 19th February 2007

Characters: R'haran, Karri
Description: R'haran gives Karri a hand washing Elliath.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 2, day 5 of Turn 4

"I'm here to help," R'haran announced as he arrived beside the younger greenrider at the edge of the summer lake on the plateau above the Weyr. "So don't even think about using that arm for anything."

Karri grinned in relief at the other greenrider's arrival. "I was hoping I wasn't going to have to. I asked for a couple of candidates to be assigned to help wash Elliath, but they haven't shown up yet."

"Can't trust a candidate to do a greenrider's job," he told her. "And what does her ladyship want scrubbed today?"

"She wants everything scrubbed." Karri said with an affectionate pat to Elliath's snout. "She's been washed for me while I was in the infirmary, but I wasn't there to tell them if they missed spots."

R'haran picked up a brush and edged into the water. Soon the season would move on and they would all retire to the lower Weyrlake ...
indoors ... thermal. He was looking forward to it. "I usually do Evie muzzle to tail, then wings." It was how he'd been taught when he was Karri's age. "Just say if that doesn't suit her."

}: Can he do my wing first? :{ Elliath whined as she swung her head towards him, }: I have an itchy spot. :{ "Elliath would prefer if you did her wings first," Karri relayed as she pointed to the offending spot, "She says it itches."

"Of course! It'll be my pleasure." He saluted the green with the brush before setting to work. "And how are you getting on, Karri?"

She watched him start on the offending wing, and took a couple more steps back till she was out of splash range. She didn't want to chance getting her cast wet by Elliath's splashes. "I'm doing okay. I never realized how many things required two arms though!"

"You wait until old age gets you and your back goes out," R'haran grumbled lightly. "Then you'll wish for a simple arm injury. Though maybe you have other bruises? Fell down stairs, didn't you? That can't be easy on a body."

"Right there, she says to scrub there." Karri relayed Elliath's message and felt her pleasure when the itchy patch was attended to.
"Yeah, that's why I'm wearing pants. My leg looks a mess, and the healer said I bruised the bone so it'll hurt for awhile, but at least I can walk."

"Indeed. A broken leg would have slowed you down a lot more. Do you feel all right now? Other than the leg and your arm? You don't have to be up and about if you're not feeling well yet."

She shook her head, "No, really. I'm glad to be out of the weyr. And like I said, Elliath just couldn't take another bath without me to guide for her."

R'haran thought that perhaps the dragon might have been supplying an excuse to enable her rider to justify an escape from her rooms.
Certainly Evie had been sensitive to his moods after their scoring, despite her injuries being many times more serious than his own.

"Did you have plenty of visitors while you were laid up?"

"Yes, and I read plenty of books too." In truth, she _hadn't_ had many visitors while in the infirmary or her weyr... but now she knew who her real friends were, and that was all that mattered.

"Books are as good as visitors," said the harper journeyman in him.
"Have I sorted that itch out, yet?"

Karri listened to her green's mumblings and gave the man a sardonic grin, "Yes, but now she says it has moved towards her back and you must attack it with your brush before it moves again."

R'haran grinned. Each dragon had her own idiosyncrasies, and whether this one itched or not, she was certainly getting her scrub done in the order she preferred it. "Did you trip?" he asked after a moment, suddenly curious about the accident. Some people were more prone to events like that, but he hadn't thought Karri to be one of them.

"Unfortunately." Karri said with a nod. "I was running down the steps and my mind was elsewhere."

"Running?" It had to be an age-related reaction but he couldn't imagine running on stairs these days. He was fit and healthy and his coordination was as good as most peoples' but he was more cautious these days than he had been twenty Turns ago. Even than he had been six Turns ago when he had made the decision to go and check whether the suspected return of Thread was fact or fiction.

Karri shrugged, it wasn't something she really wanted to get into. "I had someplace I had to get to fast. But I've learned my lesson, I won't be running on stairs anymore!"

R'haran grinned his approval but suspected the young woman had a couple more decades of running on stairs before the caution of middle age arrived to slow her down.

Last updated on the February 19th 2007

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Itchy Spots