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Harper's Tale 2 - Sunday, August 04, 2002, 7:26 PM
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Living Caverns
The rough-hewn majesty of this cavern far outpaces any delight in the multitudes of curves that form its enclosure. The glabrous grey granite is shot through with translucent obsidian, lending subtly-veined sparkle to the walls and the foot-trodden smoothness of the floor that shows centuries-old placements of the scarred trestle tables; carven hollows give homes for the glow baskets and the coat-pegs that line the walls. No mosaics, no painting, no tiles: just a few well-done tapestries mark the pathway that lead to the kitchen to the north and the inner caverns to the west, and frame the nighthearth's stew and snacks, while a heavier strip of oiled canvas shields the unwary from the wind in the bowl.
Scattered about in various perches and niches are forty-two firelizards.
You see OOC NOTICE (look sign), Thief, and Llaammaa here.
Saadni and R'sli are here.
Obvious exits:
Bowl     Kitchens     Inner Caverns     Crafting Area

R'sli wanders in, leaning heavily on his cane. He stumps to the trestle tables, and finds a pot of klah that's still warm. Pouring out, he then moves to the Tsunami table, sitting heavily, and setting his cane on the floor. He winces, and rubs his bip as the hide gets pulled back and the colder air of outside whirls in momentarily.

Wyn is back from a little foray up to her weyr, the large basket she'd been carting around earlier no-where in sight. No, instead there's simply a rather curious bulge to her riding jacket. A curious, /mewing/, bulge. Which, naturally, reveals itself to be a kitten as a little green-eyed ginger-furred head pokes up through the collar as Wyn takes a seat. "Hullo there, R'sli," she greets.

R'sli holds up a warning finger. "None of your tinker's tales about cute little kittens," he cautions as he stirs sweeting into his klah. "I've been hearing tales about your rampant feline and her bounty to the Weyr." There's no rancor in his tone, though, and he holds out a hand for the kitten. "Let me see her. I used to be a herder, you know."

Wyn calmly lifts an eyebrow, and cuddles the kitten to herself, ignoring it as it teethes on her hand, fangs too little to even scratch the skin. "Really now, five kittens is hardly qualifiable as a bounty," she drawls. "And in any case, Jack was carrying before I aquired her." Apparently why the beast was in the catacombs in the first place. "But," she grants at last, deigning to pace over and offer the little cat for inspection. "You may examine him if you wish."

R'sli takes the kitten, and pulls it around to stare into its eyes. "Good color," he notes. "And he's lively, too, isn't he?" he says, deftly moving his finger out of the reach of suddenly alert and attentive attack paws. He manages to trap the little head, and uses his thumb to pull up the upper lip. "Now that Jack's weaned 'em, what are you giving them?" he asks. "He's got good strong teeth."

Lylia walks in from the Central Bowl.

Wyn nods slightly, keeping an eye on R'sli and kitten. Ex-Herder or not, he's been twitchy lately, and Wyn wants her kittens going to good home. "Indeed. Ginger males are somewhat uncommon, but he favours his mother." Hopefully not in personality. "And they were fully weaned last sevenday, but I've been chatting with the cooks, and they've given me some prepared meat for them. Small pieces, easy to chew. And some crunchy biscuits for their teeth."

Emeri arrives from deeper in the Weyr.

R'sli nods, cradling the kitten to his chest. "You're just an evil thing, aren't you?" he croons to the ginger cat as it bats at his fingers. "So full of spite." He smiles, and looks up at Quara with a nod. "And I suppose this is the last of your litter?" he asks, nodding at Lylia. Look! Kittens at the Tsunami table!

Wyn clucks her tongue, playfully if one's skilled at reading Wyn. "Tsk, you ought not to call him evil, you'll give him a complex and it will become a self-fulfilling prophecy." she intones. "But that it is. Three females and the other male have already found good homes. This little one is all by himself, although Vorkoroth is secrectly campaigning that we keep him and lose his mother." Fat chance.

Lylia strolls in, kitten in tow. Evil kitten. The rider is quick to make her way over to the Tsunami table, a quick wiggle of fingers towards Ris. But first... "Wyn! Hey. How goes the kittens? Got homes for 'em all?" Kiiiittens. Ris, however, gets a second glance, this time with her eyebrows raising. "Seems everyone loves the kittens."

R'sli smiles at Lylia, and continues to mock the kitten with bats to the nose. The kitten is responding with wide-pawed swipes at the man's hand. "He's got a lot of fire. He'd keep someone on their toes." Someone like an evil little daughter, maybe. "Lylia, come and sit. There's actually warm klah on the tables."

"Almost. Just this little one left," nods Wyn to Lylia, tapping her fingertips together somewhat idly. "How is your little beastie doing... does Druseth approve of him?" There will be no eating of Jack's offspring. Grey gaze then returns to R'sli playing with the kitten. "That he would. Do you know of anyone who might like him?"

"Awww. I'm sure you'll find someone that'll want him. You should ask Pyrene, I'm sure she'd appreciate a sweet little pet." Lylia holds up her own kitten, who promptly struggles and swats his claws at her wrist. "Druseth loves him! Thinks he can teach the kitten some proper hunting skills... I named him Spike." Beam. With a wink, the rider slides over to the Tsunami table, flopping down with the kitten carefully cradled in her arms. "Klah? Pour me a mug, dear Ris."

R'sli has his hands full with the little fanatic in his own hands, and waves helplessly at Wyn. "Would you do the honors?" he asks. "My hands are full, you see." He wrestles with the kitten, and grins. "I think that Ashli would most likely enjoy having him," he says. "And if not, he can play with the fair."

Wyn, Mudslide interloper at the Tsunami table, does as ordered, pouring a mug for Lylia and another for herself, before perching back on her seat and nudging a mug towards the weyrlingmaster. A nod for R'sli. "I think you could be right about that. And having a pet to look after might very well keep Ashli out of mischief a little more easily." she opines.

"Mmm. You are a /dream/, dear." Lylia grabs the mug with her free hand, just letting the aroma rise for a few moments. "Hopefully it'll keep her out of mischief. But one think I learned as a child, pets give you an excuse for /more/ trouble." The kitten pounces up on the table, stalking the mug with a feral stare. Raaaawr.

R'sli rolls his eyes and groans. "That's all I need," he says dryly. "/More/ trouble from that one." He grins, and picks up the ginger kitten and nuzzles its nose with his, earning a bat and a growl. "Sometimes, I think that children are more trouble than they're worth."

"So I've been told before," is Wyn's dry reply to Lylia on the topic of dreams. "But either-or, it will at least make it easier to keep track of her, if she's got a feline to cart around. They tend to prefer places near warmth, which tends to mean public areas, around here." Comments about children are given a flicker of a smile. "My father says the same thing... And he has seventeen of us scattered around Pern."

"Put a collar with a little bell on the both of 'em, I'd say," Lylia mutters, pausing to take a sip of the klah. Her eyes close and she takes a deep breath, before setting the mug down. "Mmmm." Forbidden pleasure. And then the mug is pushed away, as she peers at R'sli and shrugs. "Children ain't /so/ bad. I mean. Fara isn't any trouble at all."

R'sli looks at Lylia with narrowed gaze. "You feeling all right?" he asks. The kitten mewfs, and sinks its claws into his thumb. He hisses, and jerks the wounded digit into his mouth. "Fince fen dif you liche kifs?" he mumbles.

Saadni trundles in, with Drusilla riding on one shoulder, the nameless grey tabble sitting on the other, and desperately trying to vault onto her head. "I hate you," the 'hand states, resolutely, upwards at the kitten, before plopping down on a table that's reasonably close. Eavesdropping distance. Perfect.

Wyn's attention is grabbed by R'sli's mild mauling, but, apparently deciding that kitten scratches need neither redwort 'nor numbweed, she doesn't make a grab for her first aid kit. "Fara's older," she comments to Lylia. "Once they're past ten, they become cabable of logic."

"I don't /like/ them, I just... don't think they're so bad." And with a little smile, Lylia glances down at Spike, cooing at him and scritching him behind the ears. The kitten perks as it catches a glimpse of Drusilla. Mewwww. The brownrider just give R'sli a lazy grin. "I'm juuuuuust fine." But Wyn gets a rather quick nod, the look on her face turned pondering. "True, that. But even when she was younger. And Donis was never /too/ bad..."

"Feel her head," Ris orders Wyn, pointing at Lylia. "There's something definitely wrong with her." All that mooning about, and lazy grins. Really. The greenrider nods at the kitten, and smiles. "I'll take this one," he says finally. "He's got a lot of fire in him." Still, though, he casts a worried glance at his wingmate. Decidely odd.

"I'd do that," notes Wyn blandly, but with a flicker of humour in her eyes. "But she might bite me." Without a feline to cuddle, as Jack has been banned from the living caverns, she settles for nursing her klah. "But I must say that your twins /do/ tend to be more, ah, energetic, than the average weyrbrat..." She trails off as R'sli makes his pronouncement, a smile cracking the expressionless cast of her face. "Excellent! I'm sure he'll do well with you."

Lylia bares her teeth oh-so-innocently at Wyn, eyebrows raising. Spike tries to mimic it, giving a little growl and pouncing playfully on Lylia's fingers. She wriggles them at the kitty, before going back to playing with the creature. "I'm /fine/, Ris. Ain't nothing /wrong/ with me. Healthy as can be expected. So play with your shardin' kitten."

R'sli blinks, and lets the kitten maul his hand for a moment. "All right, Lylia," he says in the slow tones of one talking down a jumper. "I didn't mean anything by it. You're just...out of sorts, lately." He furrows his brow. "When was your last physical?"

"I'm /not/ 'out of sorts', you silly nitwitted greenrider." Lylia proceeds to stick out her tongue in an oh-so-mature move, before slumping down and pulling Spike close. "Recent enough, /thank you/. I'm in /good/ enough health, no thanks to /you/." Lylia loves her kitten and her Quara. This R'sli-creature, however...

Isn't that supposed to be /Wyn's/ sort of line, asking about physicals? Ah well, Wyn shan't begrudge the loss. No, she's quite content to stay silent, nursing her klah, and occasionally bestirring herself to wriggle a finger or three in the direction of the Jacklets.

R'sli wrinkles his brow. "No thanks to me?" he echoes. "What's that supposed to mean? If you want me to take over as Weyrlingmaster, I'm happy to do so. Don't come snapping everyone's heads off like an angry tunnelsnake." Ris puffs up a little, not recognizing warning signs when he sees them. "Honestly, Lylia, you work too hard. One of the weyrlings said that he caught you asleep at your desk the other day! You should really see a healer, I think. Get some fellis for bedtime or something."

"I was /not/ sleeping. Shardin' liars, I tell you. And I would not give /you/ the satisfaction of having my knot. I /like/ being Weyrlingmaster, and I'm doing a shardin' good job, thankyouverymuchyoushardin'greenrideryou." Lylia also raises an eyebrow, a rather dark look on her face. "And there's /no/ way they're giving me fellis now, /thanks/. I'll snap your head off as I please." Hmph. Pah. But she still loves her kitten.

R'sli stares at Lylia's peevishness. "Are you drunk?" he asks accusingly. "Why, in Faranth's name, wouldn't they give you fellis?" He's a lost greenrider, for sure. "Make sense, woman!" he finally barks, losing his patience.

"I might note," comments Wyn, piping up from behind her klah. "That fellis is /generally/ not prescribed as a simple sleep aid. It's too dangerous to be used normally. Chamomile is preferred. But R'sli, you're a fine one to be commenting about short tempers at the moment." Her tone is mild, bland, and typically expressionless. And she can duck quickly if she has to.

"I'd hate to see how much non-sleeping someone would have to do to get prescribed fellis," Lylia mutters. Actually, more of a growl, as she plays with the swishing kitten-tail. "And I'm not drunk, thanks to /you/. I'm making perfect sense. You just don't want to understand me." Sniffle.

"Why do you keep saying 'thanks to me'?" R'sli demands, bringing his fist onto the table with a thump. "Are you and Quara hiding my daughter?" he asks. "No," he decides, waving a hand. "Because then you'd be in your cups. Is this because of that wager you lost last gather at High Reaches Hold? I /told/ you that was a bad bargain. No /way/ can a runner outdo a llama on that track." He snorts. "And no one appreciates a sore loser. Now, if you're short on marks, there's Ista's Hatching coming up. You might make some back then."

Wyn retreats back to silence, just... watching the Tsunamites sparring, nursing her klah, and people-and-kitten watching. More particularly the kittens. Because kittens are cute. And she just spent the past two months raising them.

"/I/ didn't go to the last Hold gather, so perhaps you're hallucinating in all that stupid /man/-ness of... you. Because you are a /male/ and therefore evil." Except male-kittens are wonderful, and Lylia strokes the kitten's neck, fingertips poking at the fuzzy paws. "But no, it /is/ all your fault, you know. Entirely your fault. /You're/ the one with the green dragon that managed to terribly destroy everything."

Saadni shifts, and stares in fascination. "Are they always this way?" she stage-whispers over to Wyn, near-silver occulars pinned on the two riders with... even /more/ fascination.

Auri steps into the room with a light hopskip, bringing her Auri-ate glow into the room with a bright beam. "Hello everyone! Are you all doing well? Aww, if it isn't my favorite nice friends. Wha-" She cuts herself short and hops backwards as she walks in on Ris and Lylia's spat. Greenrider swallows. "Um...let's all calm down now... I'm sure there's nothign to get upset about." Since she has no idea what's going on and all.

R'sli shakes his head. "That was Tatia, and over ten turns ago!" he says exasperatedly. "Honestly. You're just like Zaqith when she's proddy." He scowls, and narrows one eye at the brownrider. "Is that it? Quara /has/ been out of the Weyr a lot lately." He waggles his eyebrows suggestively. "Maybe you'll get lucky, and S'lor's Moonth will go up in the next few days. She's looking fairly bright."

Sii'kyn strides purposely in from the Central Bowl.

Wyn tilts her head slightly to murmur to Saandi that "It's not an uncommon sight... best if you simply sit back and watch. They've not killed each other yet." And Wyn has her first aid kit hanging around if they /do/ end up getting beyond words. So Wyn will simply watch and make the odd murmured comment, after beckoning to a Sii'kyn to join her.

Sii'kyn is paranoid. As always. "Tatia? Tatia /what/?" Yes. Much paranoia. He slinks over, and drops into the chair next to Wyn. "'lo. Heard from the grapevine that you have kittens." A definite nod. "Vor mad, much?" Snicker. His gaze roams over the caverns, watching the little dilemna with both eyebrows raised. "What's the odds on Lylia scratching Ris's eyes out?"

"Auri! I have a kitten. His name is Spike. Come see my kitten." Lylia perks up slightly as Auri enters, pushing the kitten forward to be looked at. But the slight smile quickly vanishes as her eyes narrow. Ready to go for the throat. "Druseth will rip out your intestines for that remark. /Quara and I are fine/. Quara is /not/ out of the Weyr a lot lately, and you're terribly mean and horrid and the /last/ thing I need is a dragon going up since /that/ has caused all the problems and I hate you." Breathe. Deeeeeeeep breathe.

R'sli hmphs. "Fine, then," he says coolly. "You're being difficult, you know," he points out. "And I think you're enjoying it a little too much. Either tell me why you're mad at me, or stop glowering at me." He frowns into his mug of klah as the kitten snaps him on the thumb again. Must drink klah. Resist urge to swear.

"Mmm, personally I'd post them at 5-4" drawls Wyn to Ike, even as her eyebrows twitch slightly at Lylia's last pronouncement, before letting a smile touch her lips as she gestures at Spike and the Ris-kitten. "The grapevine is slow. Jack had her litter four fortnights ago, and the kittens have all found new homes." A gesture to the two gracing the tabletop. "Oddly, Vorkoroth rather liked them."

Auri is easily distracted. She squeaks, "Squeak!" and trots over to the kitten, dropping to her knees to coo over the animal. "Awww, it's so pweshious! What a kee-yute widdle kitten, and iss name iss Spike! How wuvvable!" She cringes at R'sli's grumbling and Lylia's intestinal threatening, looking up at the greenrider with imploring gooey blue eyes, then turning them onto Lylia. "Umm...how about we all take a deep breath and practice some nice, happy conflict resolution?" Hopefl smile.

Saadni positively /squeals/. "Yeeeeeeen!" Brattish stablehand launches herself towards the brownrider, both kittens leaning forwards in terror, claws sinking into her shoulderr. She settles into the browner's lap. "This one's yours! It's a little brat, but it'll match your canine!" Bubble-bubble-bubble. "Plus, you can... get Girl dyed grey, and then they'll all match!" She's proud. "And /this/ one," she snags the little ginger tabby. "This is Drusilla." Beam. "Cute, isn't she?" Er -- Ike, watch out for that claw. It's coming warily within nose-striking distance...

Spike slinks forward, looking all 'grr' as he peers up at Auri. Peeeeeeer. A little 'mew' is offered as he wiggles his tail. Rrrrr! Lylia, however, is much less fuzzy and playful, jaws snapping as she glares at R'sli. "/I/ hate /you/, because /you/ got /me/ pregnant! Is /that/ so /shardin'/ hard to understand? /Is/ it? So don't tell me I'm enjoyin' it, you stupid-ugly-mean-horrid-greenrider-with-bad-hair-and-lots-of-stupidness-and-stuff." Glower, sulk.

Sii'kyn nods amiably at Wyn. "Five to four, eh? Not good enough odds for me to lay down any good money, then." He's disappointed. And then, he stares. First, Saadni launches into his lap, he's assailed by a few kittens, one almost hooks his nose off.. "You're pregnant?" He blurts at Lylia. Oh, no. Pregnant Tsu-ranker. This time, his nose is getting broken, ain't it?! "Uh. Thanks, sis. I think." He takes the grey kitten gingerly. "Are you.. sure.. that this is for me?" A beseeching look, sideways, at Wyn. Save him. "Uh. Did she just say she was pregnant?" He's still trying to absorb that. Y'know.

The last swallow of kalh is ejected before it can comletely disappear down Ris' throat, soaking the ginger kitten. "You're...what?" he says incredulously. "When did that happen?" he ticks off days on his fingers, ignoring the angry spits of his new feline. "Zaqith's last flight?" he asks. "But...but...." Visions of Ashli-clones swim before his eyes. "But that was two months ago!" Like that'll change anything.

Wyn beams at Sii'kyn. Or, would, if Wyn beamed at anything when sober. We'll settle for a bright flash of a smile. "Ah, so /you're/ Yen," she notes to her clutchmate. "Why didn't you tell my your little sister was here, hmm?" Save him? No way. After all, he's Jack's Uncle, remember. But he's saved anyways by a Wyn overhearing Lylia's pronouncement. "She did."

Auri looks from R'sli, to Lylia, then back to R'sli. "I think he has nice hair, Lylia," she says sweetly, then scrunches her nose adoringly at Spike. "The kitty thinks so, don'tcha?" Lylia's announcement induces a loud, ecstatic screech from the girl, of ear-shattering proportions. "You're pregnant too? Yaaaay! We can be pregnant together!" She runs over to Lylia for a hug. Careful, they may get emotional.

Saadni nestles on Sii'kyn's lap, watching the Lylia/R'sli drama unfold. "Of course he's Yen. Who else would he be?" She reaches over and ruffles his hair fondly, before looking over at Auri. "Uh. Are they going to get teary or slappy, bro? 'Cause I'm bettin' three-to-one that it's gonna be teary and not slappy." Drusilla purrs. Conflict. Connnnnnflict.

"/Duh/, R'sli. That's how I kinda /noticed/. And seeing as you're the only man I've been stuck going near for a long time, I /know/ it was you and your ugly, ugly man-parts." Growl. Snarl. Lylia is /not/ looking happy as she points a finger at him. "It's all /your/ fault, so now /you/ had better take over my morning sweeps..." And she perks. Just slightly. "Hey. No morning sweeps. Neat." And then it's back to growling as Auri approaches, a glower given towards the girl. "Yay. Whoopee. How /great/." Right. Sii'kyn just gets a glare. "/Yes/, I am."

Sii'kyn is just relieved it's not him in R'sli's shoes. Ahem. "So we're gonna have a Ly-junioress running around? Cringe. "I'll take those odds, Saa. I know Ly." He's confident, as he tucks Miss Violent Kitty underneath an arm. "She's gonna be more slappy than teary." He leans back. "So. Ris, I never knew you had ugly manparts!" he calls out, before snickering and ducking behind the human shield that is Saadni. "Oh, Wyn.. Didn't I tell you? Yeah. Little bratlet decided she wanted to see the world." He rolls his eyes. "I think we should ship her off to a craft."

"Send her to Healer, and then you and Morallen can work up some agreement to exchange big-brotherly duties, or something," opines Wyn, before blinking and repeating the phrase 'ugly man-parts' under her breath in a slightly incredulous tone. "Mmm... put me down for a half-mark that she does both," she drawls. "Hormonal imbalances, and all."

Oh, no. She said the H-word!

"Play your cards right, and you just might find out," the greenrider shoots back at Ike. "Zaqith'll be rising again soon enough." He smiles, though, his grin broad across his face as he turns back to Lylia. "All right. I'll do that for you. And anything else you need done, until you're delivered." He crosses his chest dranatically. "'On my dragon, tail to tooth.'" he quotes.

Lylia casts a quick, dark look at Sii'kyn. "His manpart are more than /yours/, Ike. /Any/ day." And with a bitter, twisted smirk, she stares at Ris. And the eyebrow raises. "You will be doing that and /much/ more for me. Or I will rip out your eyes and feed them to my dragon, before gutting you and decorating my weyr with your intestines. /You/ are responsible for the utter destruction of my life, so for the next seven months, /I/ will be the utter destruction of yours." Scowl. And scooping up her kitten, the rider flounces out.

Zia strides in from the Central Bowl.

Saadni stares first at Wyn, then at Ike, and then at... everyone else. Erk. "Uh. Why would--ew! Ike. Tell him that Ram is /not/ catching his green." She's defiant. "'Sides, Ram has /taste/. He wouldn't go up after /any/ green." Take it from her. She's the expert. Cough. "Uh. Can we leave my brother's manparts /out/ of this conversation?" She pleads this, leaning back in Sii'kyn's lap. Tremble. "Evil riders." Mutter-mutter. "Healer?" She looks promptly interested. "Ooooh. I could be one of those nifty mindhealer things. And probe people's brains!" ... ahem.

R'sli pales as the sentence comes down, and sinks back in his chair. "That was the scariest thing anyone has ever said to me," he says weakly.

"I fail to see," comments Wyn, conversationally serene. "Why everyone seems to be so fond of intestines as interior decoration. Really, they /do/ start to smell, and only attract insufferable numbers of firelizards..." The world according to Wyn. A Wyn who offers R'sli a little smile, before cocking her head at Saandi. "Mindhealing... really? I'm an ex-Mindhealing student myself, you know..."

Zia trots merrily in, pigtails bouncing on her shoulders beneath a warm, knitted cap. Considering the fact that she already has a small flask in her hand and another tucked in her pocket, she avoids the serving trays and instead beelines for her faithful clutchmates. They'll welcome her companionship, right? "Brother? Ike's your brother?" she automatically questions of Saadni. "And what about Greens? They're so sexy, eh, Ike? Nothing like chasing a bit o' green tail around a clear sky, no siree.." As she speaks, she sculls a bit of liquor from her flask and offers it to Ike. "Something to warm you up, O clutchmate of mine? And Wyn, too.. Here, have a drink. How's Vor these days?"

The housekeeper arrives to cart Lylia off to bed.

Sii'kyn blinks at R'sli. "You -- /no/," he states, firmly. "I told Ram, no more High Reaches greens. Like, ever. The riders are too scary, here." Sigh. "And.. shut up, Ly. My manparts are more than adequate. Just ask Trajan." He's miffed, now, glaring after the brownrider, before chuckling at Wyn. And Saa. "Ooh. Me and 'Allen could do that, yep. Could be downright interesting." A beam. "Okay, Saadni, you're going to HealerHall." And that's just that, apparently. He doesn't even ask her. Poor girl. "Oh, no. If you're going to discuss how to dissect a man's brain, I'm leaving," he complains. "Zia! Help! Save me from the insanity! I've gotten threatened and coddled and demeaned, all day. An' chasin' gold's tails are much better," he firmly states. "Uh. No liquor for me." He shakes his head hastily. "Yeah, this is my sister." Belatedly. "Saadni." He cradles his grey feline, staring down at it dubiously.

Auri goes home.

Wyn offers Sii'kyn an innocent little look. And Wyn was last seen innocent at, oh, age 14? "Size matters not?" she queries, edging out of range of thwap, before giving Zia a nod and a little beckon. "Have a seat, my dear clutchmate, and meet Ike's new pet kitten. Jack's offspring." she qualifies. "Saandi and Ris have one, too. But really, Ike, I think you just tend to get off on the wrong foot with the greens here. Tatia's the only one that's ever bothered /me/." Of course, Wyn's lacking in man-parts.

"Oh, nonsense. Greenriders are so much better in bed, Sii'kyn," Zia tuts, tipping her head back to drain what's left of her first hipflask. "Just ask Ram. Diu turns on a mark, too, which is good for the feisty ones." Gawds. Somehow Zia has become nothing more than a dirty old man. She'll be P'rru's MiniMe next, and no mistake. Pointy Buttocks and all. Now.. where was she.. Oh, yes. "The Healers? Oh, Faranth's bulging buttcheeks, Ike, you send that girl to the Herders! They know how to treat a young'un, and I can recommend her to the best the Hall has to offer. Besides, I need her nimble hands to look after the runners I left behind." She fastens a dark eye on Saadni. "You like runners, right, gal? All little gals like runners." Eyes pop at the kitten, though. "Ooooh, Wyn, you didn't /tell/ me! Goodness, if you wanted kittens, Ike, you should've stopped by the Weyr - Two of my felines just dropped litters of at least 5 apeice. Cute little buggers, they are. Gotta get rid of some - One or two, at least." Beam.

R'sli stands, suddenly, at Zia's announcement, and tucks the ginger kitten in his jacket. "On that note, I think I'll cut my losses and get ready for morning sweeps. If you'll excuse me." And off he wanders, leaning against his cane like the happiest schmoe in the world.

R'sli exchanges the protection of stone for the bowl outside.

Saadni takes her kitten - and flees from the insanity of the WraithClutch. "Uh.. of course I like runners. I'm a stablehand. And.. I've got runners to groom!" Er. Yeah. Flee.

Sii'kyn paranoidly stares at Wyn, then at Zia. "Uh. Size matters not, right." Whatever. Ahem. "This little hellion.. Want her back, Wyn?" He soulfully holds out the kitten. "Oooh, Zia, maybe I could trade for a black kitten. Do you have a black one? Ram wants a black one." Which means, of course, he'll end up with /two/ kittens in the end. He waves after Ris and Saa, staring, mystified. "So, Lylia's pregnant." And, once again, he thanks Faranth it's not him. Whew.

"No." replies Wyn sweetly to Sii'kyn. "Your sister just gave you that little one as a present. Bad manners to return the gift. And besides, she's the quiet one of the litter." Scary thought, eh? But since she's now dispatched the matter of the felines to her disposal, she gives Zia a knowing little smile and comments that "Personally, I find stalking Holdbreds much more fun. If they don't faint at the sight of you, they can be surprisingly liberated, given the chance." This is delivered in a tone so reasonable and dead-level that it could only have come from Wyn. "But, now that I've done my duty in shocking you, Vorkoroth informs me that I have a certain feline mother in my weyr, who no doubt expects her evening grooming." Waitaminute... Vor is now in favour of Jack? Don't ask. "Give my condolences to Lylia, if you see her. And remember, my friends, contraceptives are /good/ things."