Beans!

Writers: Chelle, Len
Date Posted: 29th August 2010

Characters: G'wen, Ciddis
Description: Ciddis runs away from work
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 10, day 16 of Turn 5

Ciddis had somehow managed to escape from her fostermother. The small Weyrbrat loved to disappear into the tunnels when she could. With bright eyes, she pushed her way through people, trying to find a place to hide from the well-meaning adults that wanted her to separate beans.

Somehow, she ended up in the candidate barracks. Looking around, she
hurried to what seemed to be an empty room. Heading inside to the dark
space, she found a corner and crowded into it. No one would find her
there, right?

Out of the corner of his eye, Galwen saw a shadow move into one of the
storage rooms. He blinked, surely it had to just be a shadow. It was
too dark to be a fire lizard. No other candidates were about. A
feline perhaps? Curious he put the tunic he was mending on his bed and
walked into the darkened room. Fumbling for a glow basket, he turned
to see a pair of eyes watching him.

"Hello?" he said, leaning down. He saw the young girl clearly. "Ciddis! You can't be in here, you'll get in trouble."

"You're gonna gimme away!" she whispered furiously.

This girl, she was always ducking out of work. Trying to keep his face
straight, Galwen asked, "give you away to who?"

"I dunno..Larla, the Headwoman..." She shook her hands then got up,
ready to bolt and find another hiding place. "They want me to do beans!
Beans!"

"Hmm, wonder how many marks Larla would give me for you?"

She looked horrified, then angry. "Go do your stupid candidate stuff."
And then she took off, making quick time through the barracks, to exit into another tunnel.

Galwen groaned before turning to track her down. If they took away the
first part of weyrbrat, it'd be a more accurate title for her. Shucking beans wasn't as horrible a task as she was making out. In fact, he found it quite enjoyable, sitting in a corner peeling the long pods whilst the Caverns women gossiped. Now, cleaning up after a Hatching had occured...He shuttered, thinking of the mess the Candidates' families left behind.

The tunnel Ciddis had escaped into was dark with no glow baskets to
light it. For the hundredth time Galwen wished he had been brave
enough to have gone with the small group of boys and weyrlings last turn
when they had flown off to find a firelizard nest. Then he'd have one
of the flits to help him find the child.

"Ciddis! Where the bloody shards are you?"

Her footfalls were soft since she was small, but they still echoed on
the stone. She was making her way toward some of the older living
quarters. Plenty of places to hide there. **Stupid. If I answer, he'll
hear and catch me**

A blur tiptoed just ahead. He trotted up to the girl, and grabbed her
by the shoulder.

"Come on, let's get back to the kitchen. Make you a deal, you go willingly and I'll do the bloody beans, okay?"

"Really?" She frowned. **Wait** "Hold on, what's in it for you?"

"What's in it for me?" Like not getting in trouble with E'naer when
Ciddis was discovered? To the girl, he said, "Come on, it's
relaxing. It's not like there's a Hatching today and half of Pern is
descending on us, demanding to be fed. Shells girl, you could live in
a Hold!"

"I ain't no holder! Take it back!" She shoved him pretty good.

He snorted. "No, more like a future goldrider, with that attitude."

She stood back, obviously still angry. "Fine. You'll do the beans."

"Great," he said, holding out a hand. "Can we go now?"

"Yeah.." She was certainly a handful and there were whispers about what
she might be like when she grew up, but Ciddis ignored them. She liked
who she was. "I'm not gonna holdyour hand though. Marek said hand holding is for sissies."

"Okay then," the small boy laughed. She really was a handful.
Keeping a wary eye on the younger child, he escorted her back to the
kitchens.

"Do you really think I might be a goldrider hm?" She had seen Traelyn
once, at a Gather. Her voice was quiet and thoughtful as they walked.

"Hmm, let me see, you live in a Weyr, and you're bossy," he teased.

"Yeah but I'm not pretty," she admitted dejectedly.

"Who says? And who says you have to be pretty to ride the queen?" He
wouldn't have called any of the queenriders in Dragonsfall particularly
beautiful.

"Most of 'em are. They don't have freckles and look like me." Her
fostermother said she looked like a ragamuffin all the time.

"They don't look like you because they're grown women! And what's
wrong with freckles?" He held open the kitchen door for her.

"Well...having dots all over your face can't be good." And she didn't
think it looked okay either. Whenever she saw the girls at the gathers
dancing, none of them had freckles. Ciddis walked inside, slowly making
her way to the beans, knowing that the Headwoman was going to give her a
scolding for being late.

Galwen laughed, before sitting in front of the pile of beans.

Last updated on the September 22nd 2010

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