Girl Talk... With The Headwoman?

Writers: Avery, Heather
Date Posted: 30th June 2014

Characters: Chaysea, Ikalis
Description: Ikalis has some girl talk with the Headwoman.
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 7, day 18 of Turn 7
Notes: Mentioned: Alina

Ikalis was curled up on the crate containing clothes, rubbing
furiously at her eyes. She was supposed to be going to dinner with
friends, damn it. Not sitting in a stockroom, petting her flit, and
getting all morose over holder girls.

Wavecrest lifted his head and cheeped right before the door creaked
open. She froze, considering if she could hide anywhere - and then
realized just how stupid that impulse was.

Chaysea yelped when she opened the door of the storeroom. She hadn't
expected anyone else to be inside, and a smile flitted across her face
as she put a hand to her chest, "Ikalis! You scared me to death!" She
exhaled deeply as she stepped inside the storeroom and flicked open
the shutter to the basket of glows, "What are you doing in here?"

"Uh..." Was crying a good answer? "I was looking for...fabric." Which
is why she was sitting on the box. Nope, that sounded as pathetic as
she thought it did. "Sorry for scaring you, Headwoman."

"Not at all, I shouldn't be so jumpy." Chaysea took note of the
moisture on Ikalis's cheeks, "Maybe I can help you find what you are
looking for?"

"Sure." She rubbed at her face again. "Anitae said she'd make me a
scarf for my hair if I brought something I liked."

Chaysea smiled, "Did you have a certain color in mind then?"

"I dunno." She fiddled with her hair, wondered what Alina would like.
"What do you think?"

"I think you should see this new print we just got in." Chaysea winked
and crooked her finger at Ikalis. Moving over to one corner of the
storeroom, Chaysea drug out a box she had purposefully tucked away on
the bottom shelf. Cracking the lid open, she smiled at Ikalis, "What
do you think?"

Ikalis edged over to take a peek. There was a gorgeous azure fabric in
there. "That's pretty. Fit for a goldrider."

"Fit for any woman." Chaysea amended with a wink, "Now, why don't you
tell me how much of this fabric you need and what was bothering you
earlier and I will get it ready for you."

The Headwoman wasn't going to let it slip past, huh? She could be
honest. "I have a crush. A stupid, childish crush. On someone who will
never, ever like me back." And if that wasn't the most overdramatic
thing she'd ever said...

"Do you mind if I ask who?" Chaysea missed having other women to talk to

She wondered quickly if the Headwoman was going to care, then decided
that she'd have to get used to how weyrfolk worked. "Alina. Candidate.
_Holder._" The last was huffed - then she slapped her hand over her
mouth. "Uh, sorry."

Chaysea laughed, "No, it is allright, don't apologize. I know how
Holders can be," she rolled her eyes, "trust me. And this Alina, does
she know you like her?" No, women dating women wasn't exactly a
commonality at the Hold, but Chaysea was at the Weyr now and she had a
duty to service the people around her regardless of who they bedded at
night.

"Nope. And she's got this other kid sniffing around her and I - " She
was going to say she hated him on principle, but realized that sounded
unprofessional. And how could she be impressive if she sounded like a
kid? "I'm just a wherry."

"You are not a wherry. It is hard not to get overemotional when the
heart is involved." Chaysea cut a couple of yards of the cloth, "And
what about this other kid? Is this another girl?"

"No. He's another worker." Now Ikalis looked like a stressed teenager,
not the mature young woman she tried to pass herself off as. "Did you
ever want somebody unattainable?"

Chaysea smiled a little, "Of course, who hasn't?" She thought back,
"He owned a small runner farm outside of the main Hold. Chestnut brown
hair," she gestured her hand, "beautiful blue eyes." The Headwoman
sighed, almost dreamily, but snapping out of it and glancing back at
Ikalis, "And completely married to some snub-nosed brat."

It startled a laugh out of her. "And marriage is early." She would
have been married by now. "Did he know?"

"Of course not," Chaysea said, smoothing her hands over her skirts,
before shooting a wink at Ikalis, "because I was married too. Had to
keep my looks to myself, yes?"

She nodded. "Some of the most promising girls at the Baker Hall had to
leave because their fathers arranged matches. I never understood."

Chaysea lifted her shoulders, "I didn't have much of a choice. It was
not like I could run away to the Weyr, and since the man my parents
arranged me to was old and sickly I figured I wouldn't have to put up
with him long. That is a much nicer arrangement than marrying a
younger man who treats you horrible your entire life."

"Did you like him?" she asked curiously. Not too many of the women who
came to the weyr from the holds had ever been married. "I think if a
man treated me like that I'd have hit him with a plate."

"Dothran wasn't _mean_ to me necessarily. He was just a crotchety,
sick old man. I didn't like him, but, as I said, it could have been
worse." Chaysea shook her head, "Anyway, we are not here to talk about
me."

There went her cunning plan. "I'm just worried she'll like him and not
give me a thought because she'll think it's terrible. And then we
won't be friends anymore, and I like having friends."

"I am not trying to discourage you but I had to practically coerce
Alina into getting a pair of pants. If she's that holdbred..."

Ikalis nodded. "I wish I knew how to just not like someone."

Chaysea nodded sympathetically, "That is just one of those things in
life. You are young yet with plenty of opportunities. You might as
well just tell her, right? Either you sit on the sidelines and never
find out, or she says she doesn't like girls. Either way, you end up
in the same place."

"I should stop being a weyrbrat, huh?" Ikalis rubbed at her eyes one
more time. "You're really good at this comforting thing. I bet you'll
be great with all the Candidates."

"Thanks. Now, come on, let's get out of this storage closet." Chaysea
pushed open the door and shuttered the basket of glows.

"Yes, ma'am," she said, getting up to follow.

Last updated on the July 1st 2014

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Girl Talk... With The Headwoman?