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Post by Evelie on Dec 25, 2010 0:20:47 GMT -5
She nodded. He had a point. None of the candidates were ideal, but there was certainly something to be said for knowing what you were getting into. She still wasn't sure of her own opinion - there was a lot to consider. Effects of different methods of motivation, the perils and benefits of ambition...
"I've noticed good leadership doesn't breed very deeply."
Listening to his soft chuckle, Evie started to smile, curious, her thoughts turning away from politics for a moment. "Are you thinking of a specific example?"
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Post by Darvin on Dec 26, 2010 21:51:15 GMT -5
He started, abruptly, at her flash of insight, and stopped, to turn and look at her, a brow quirked. "Well... Yes, actually. I do not feel that K'rill's bloodline runs quite so true as he would persuade us. He has a lot of potential, but I think his upbringing has soured his temperament. It couldn't have helped that he was given the position of Wingsecond his first day in the Weyr." He shook his head, slightly, chuckling at his own honesty. "It is more the Weyrleader's choice than my own, however. He has most say. I'm simply a glorified gardener." He gave another chuckle, this one rich with irony. His position as Groundsmaster of the Weyr was far from a 'glorified gardener', but he really didn't see himself as all that vital to the Weyr.
He enjoyed the job, certainly. It was easy, it was quick, it kept him occupied... Mostly, part of his mind replied. He frowned, slightly, at that admonition. It was true, he did still yearn for something more, now and then. Not that he gave voice to it.
Tag: Evelie
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Post by Evelie on Dec 27, 2010 22:04:01 GMT -5
Evie felt him startle and stopped walking as he stopped, prompting a tiny, satisfied grin from her. One did not become a Harper without learning to read one’s audience. It was good to know that her perception was not necessarily dulled - being blind simply meant that she had to play close attention to other nuances. Perhaps she wasn’t quite so helpless after all. Perhaps.
Her head cocked to the side as she listened, an expression of amused interest on her face. The amusement faded a touch as she heard the irony in D’vin’s chuckle. The brief moment of confidence she had felt earlier was swallowed by further frustration at how she couldn’t see his face. Irony was tricky to decipher on its own. She thought he was likely joking about being a ‘glorified gardener’, but she couldn’t be sure what was lurking behind the comment.
“I am not familiar with K’rill - I don’t think I’ve ever met him and I know very little about him. I’m...” she hesitated a moment, face dropping as some shyness surfaced, “...somewhat isolated, I suppose.” Involuntarily, she squeezed his hand, as if to remind herself that there was still someone out there in the dark. She had been doing so well, but the feeling of uselessness she constantly fought since the day she lost her sight had started to rise again.
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Post by Darvin on Dec 27, 2010 23:16:42 GMT -5
He smiled, reassuringly, and gave her hand a gentle squeeze, as he spoke, his voice carrying the smile, "You're really not missing much. He's the son of a line of Wing and Weyr leaders, and he's let every generation of it go to his head, unfortunately." He shook his head, sighing, and thoughtfully traced a fingertip over the back of her hand. "You know, I think I ought to spend more time around the Hold... It's more relaxing, here. My duties at the Weyr aren't all that terribly taxing."
Tag: Evelie
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Post by Evelie on Dec 28, 2010 20:21:16 GMT -5
She felt a bit better at his reassurance and realized just how starved she had been recently for company. It was awkward, trying to get along on her own and not be a nuisance, but still be a part of a community. She thought she still hadn’t quite found her place in the Hold yet, which made the idea of D’vin spending more time at the Hold appealing. It would be nice to hear his voice more often.
”My duties at the Weyr aren’t all that terribly taxing.”
Turning her face in the direction of his voice, she smiled. “Just a ‘glorified gardener’?” It was clear she didn’t believe that for a second.
Tag: D'vin
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Post by Darvin on Dec 29, 2010 3:21:12 GMT -5
He chuckled. "My work is pretty easy, most of the time... I keep the ground crews organized that help fit out the dragons, and keep their and their rider's gear in top condition. Sacks for firestone, and the bindings for the sacks, erecting and maintaining fences around the herdbeasts, keeping the Bowl clean, disposing of waste, keeping everything fed, watered, and alive... My men know their work pretty well, by now. They can get along well enough without me, at least for a few days." He grumbled, thoughtfully. "Yeah. I'll take a few days, here, I think. We could all use a break now and then, eh?"
He chuckled, and tilted his head back, slightly, eyeing her, ponderingly. "So... Ev." He quirked a brow. "What do you usually do to pass your days, around the Hold? I haven't been around here much, myself. Not entirely sure what's done, here. Too much time in the Weyr I guess, eh?" He smirked, the smile tinging his voice with mirth. "About time I find out, I suppose."
Tag: Evelie
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Post by Evelie on Dec 29, 2010 17:09:48 GMT -5
Ev? No one had ever called her ‘Ev’ before. She liked it, giggling a little.
“I’m not sure I’ll be much help to you. Most of my days are spent walking around the Hold, trying to memorize my way by touch, sound and smell. Not very exciting, I’m afraid.”
She paused for a moment before shyly admitting, “Some days I find a spot out of the way and practice playing, either gitar or drums. The children like it, though of course they can’t stay and listen unless there’s someone nearby who can watch them... since I can’t.” Her effort to be nonchalant was admirable, but she was obviously disappointed by this.
Tag: D'vin
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Post by Darvin on Dec 31, 2010 3:50:32 GMT -5
He tilted his head, his tone pondering, "Hn. Perhaps you could play for me, sometime? I could keep an eye on the children for you... Let you focus on your music, mmn?" He chuckled, and gently tugged her slightly aside, as the crowd began to swell, somewhat, stepping into a small alcove near the fringe.
"And perhaps," he offered, thoughtfully, "I could help you discover more of the Hold. Help you familiarize yourself somewhat better." He glanced around, attentively, as he heard slightly raised voices in the crowd. Someone else discussing the issue of succession, from the sound of it, though the voices quieted soon after.
"Quite a popular subject, it seems," he remarked, absently.
Tag: Ev
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Post by Evelie on Dec 31, 2010 20:32:45 GMT -5
Evie was stunned, a wide smile on her face as she listened. She hardly noticed when he tugged her aside, barely heard the swell of people, she was so happy with his offer to help - and honestly, more than a little flattered. Which, she reflected, was silly, he was just being nice, but that didn’t change how much it meant to her.
With a small motion she waved away his absent comment. “I imagine people will be talking about the succession for some time. Are you sure you want to spend your days relaxing from the Weyr by following around a blind woman?” No point in being delicate about it. “I am very, very grateful for the offer, but I want to make sure you meant it. It isn’t exactly how most people would like to spend a day.”
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Post by Darvin on Jan 5, 2011 18:58:52 GMT -5
He chuckled, and raised a brow. "I was actually rather thinking I'd walk beside you. It's somewhat harder to carry on a conversation if I'm just following you around, don't you think?" He laughed, and smirked, giving her hand a squeeze.
He glanced around the Hold, "Now, then... Are you hungry?" He chuckled. "I think it's about time I explore in the direction of the kitchens... We're at the south entrance to the main Hall in the Hold. Where from here?"
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Post by Evelie on Jan 6, 2011 21:31:06 GMT -5
With a small laugh, Evie shook her head. “I didn’t mean literally following me,” she muttered, smiling. She thought for a moment, trying to envision the map of the Hold she had been putting together in her head by touch. “If we're facing the entrance, then I think that if we turn around, there should be a corridor to your left, off the main Hall.”
She smirked. “I usually find my way by smell and sound. The Head Cook’s voice carries.”
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Post by Darvin on Jan 10, 2011 21:44:31 GMT -5
He grinned, and squeezed her hand, lightly, "Well, then. Let's find ourselves a meal, shall we?" His smile carried into his voice, as he paused, for a moment, and then tentatively shifted his hand to her lower back, lightly, waiting for some reaction, on her part. He frowned, slightly, as if fleetingly worried he might have overstepped his bounds.
He kept the frown from his voice, however, "What do you usually like? And where do you usually eat? I can't remember the last time I stayed in an actual room."
Tag: Evelie
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Post by Evelie on Jan 11, 2011 21:23:38 GMT -5
Evie stiffened at the feel of his hand on her back, more out of surprise than anything else. Reminding herself to breathe, she relaxed and found the light touch... pleasant. Smiling, she blushed, suddenly shy again, speaking softly.
“Oh, I like anything - except blueberries,” she made a sour face at the thought. “I usually eat in the dining hall. There’s a table near the entrance that is easy for me to get to and out of the way of everyone else.” Her confidence returned with her curiosity, “Are weyrs really all that different from rooms? I mean, apart from the dragon.”
She resisted the urge to grimace. That sounded remarkably silly now that she said it aloud.
Tag: D’vin
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Post by Darvin on Jan 11, 2011 21:42:31 GMT -5
D'vin smiled warmly, and gently led her around a corner - Straight into a low-voiced argument, like a brewing storm. Blocking half the hallway was a group of men, quite visibly led by one man, who, though roughly the same height, seemed to tower over the men around him. He held himself straight, and proud, his jaw set, his eyes blazing with pride and indignance.
"If you intend to accuse me," he growled, facing a smaller man, "Then I suggest you do so plainly. And where did you hear about this? Around the tavern, from some half-sharded drunkard? Or maybe whispered around the hall?" He shook his head, and sighed, heavily. Borel wasn't unusually large, or unusually strong, or even unusually attractive or ugly. He was actually very average, very plain, with the leathery, tanned skin of a life-long worker. What stood out about him, however, was his sheer presence, his force of will, which rolled off of him like a heat wave. And, at the moment, the full force of his presence was hammering down on a smaller, but defiant-looking young man. The boy looked to be about fourteen or fifteen, though his higher-pitched voice hinted at perhaps a younger age - Or fear. "It's true. You did kill a man, didn't you?"
"Did I?" Borel asked the young son of the Lord Holder, "Did I kill a man? I did nothing wrong, and everyone sharding well knows it." He glared down at the boy.
D'vin frowned, and his hand tensed, slightly, on her lower back. He leaned down, lips close to her ear, and whispered, "The louder voice is Borel... The younger one is the Lord Holder's elder son."
"He's right," one of Borel's group replied. "Everyone knows it," he mimicked, a moment later. "I don't see why you're raising the issue, boy. It's not as if you are qualified to lead. We need a strong leader, in these troubled times." "A strong leader," one of the others murmured. A few glanced over at D'vin, with more curiosity than hostility, more wondering what he was going to do than angry at his intrusion.
Tag: Evelie
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Post by Evelie on Jan 12, 2011 18:04:19 GMT -5
It didn’t take sight for Evie to sense the force of will that radiated off of whoever was speaking. The young voice that answered was either very brave, or very stubborn and foolish. Considering how young he sounded, she thought it was probably the latter.
Evie felt D’vin’s hand tense, his whispered words were worrisome. The Lord Holder’s son had just accused Borel of killing a man - and as yet another person spoke, Evie realized Borel wasn’t alone. She didn't like the sound of things, not at all.
Slowly, Evie reached her hand up, her searching fingers gently brushing the side of D’vin’s face. She turned her head a little to whisper back to him, “How many are there?” She wanted to know as much as possible about what was going on.
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