[PRP] The First Blossoms [Raen/Veikel]

[ShinosBee]

Raen was still learning her way around the Weyr. Thetling Hold had been downright tiny in comparison, and she'd known everyone therein almost as well as she'd known herself. Now to come here, to Western Weyr, the biggest gathering of humanity in the region, where she still knew all the same people, but those fifty-odd souls comprised a mere drop in the bucket... well. It was a bit much at moments. She understood very well the importance of easing yourself into a new situation, and taking the time to be alone or with only one or two people. Even those extra-friendly, extra-social folks got worn down now and then, after all.

So when she felt the faint tuggings of strain at the corners of her mind, she acted on them. Her Hold's people were all safe, well-integrated and settling in now, and her number one responsibility had reverted to being herself. It was an unfamiliar thing, to be able to focus on herself totally, but a bit... nice, for a change.

With free time on her hands for the first time in ages, she'd quietly asked around, and learned that among her fellow healers were several that enjoyed plantlife. Some even kept small gardens where they could, or potted herbs. Mostly ones for the purpose of making medicines, she'd assumed, but even that would be nice. Her hope had been to find some flowers, and possibly someone to talk to about them, but she would be content with whatever she turned up, she decided. The little island where their Hold had been had only had a few types of flowers, but it had been rife with them in places. Entire little valleys pocked the land, burgeoning with white and red and yellow blooms that rippled in the sea winds...

Western, being a proper full-sized (or at least, to her untrained eye) Weyr, was more of sand and stone than plant life. And that made sense, really. With the heart of threadfighting efforts focused here, what use was there for flowers growing from the walkways and walls? Out where the sides of the bowl's edges gave way to the expanse of wallows and huts, full of their dragons and riders and leading down towards the distant shores, she'd seen trees and bushes, even faint speckles of color. That would have to be enough, she'd supposed... But if one or two of the other healers kept a little hidden garden, and she could find it, maybe get to know the one keeping it... make friends, as well as being colleagues?

The door she'd been directed to stood open, and she gave the frame a faint knock as she came 'round it, stepping through and pausing at the sight of the expanse. The caverns and halls of the Weyr still seemed vast to her, arching high overhead in some places and as wide as Thetling's dining hall'd been in some cases. This one was roughly so: a workplace decked with tables and chairs, of a height to have patients sit upon for inspecting. A few beds were tucked to one side, and shelves of jars full of salves and wraps and dried leaves lined the opposite wall. Across from where she'd entered, the cavern opened into a ledge—to allow riders swift entry and exit, no doubt—though half of it had been sectioned off, sheets of netting hung up to keep wherries or insects at bay, or to shield the plants within from direct sun.

And oh, what plants there were! Brilliant spires of purple blossoms, packed tight on their stems like feathers on a wherry's wing. Riotous golden explosions of petals, a firework at the end of a slender wand-like strip of green. Curling red and green vines that hung up along the mesh, dropping bell-like blooms that jangled jauntily as the figure stooped to tend their bases shifted, no doubt turning towards the sound of her knock.

"Hello... Veikel? My name is Raen," she called, soft but firm in tone as she crossed the threshold properly. "I wanted to... see your flowers, if you don't mind?"

houllow

 

[houllow]

The weather for this time of the Turn had been usually perfect with days being warm rather than scorching hot, and rain had come in gentle showers rather than torrential downpours that washed away good soil along with bad. The only drawback was gentle rains brought unwelcome humidity, something that Veikel was currently dealing with as he attempted to transplant a few of his newest blooms. The size of the bud to flower change had been beyond what he expected (as had the actual wooden stem that resembled a tree) and so in an effort to save what was months of work, he was re-potting. Really he could have planted them outside and seen what would happen given Faranth's mercy on the elements, but shard it all he'd worked so hard. If these beloved children died just from moving pot to pot Veikel didn't even know what he'd do with himself.

"There there, it'll be - oop." The sound of a knock and a voice calling his name prompted the healer to shift where he squatted. It was an impressive move for someone so lanky and long of limb, but turns of practice in this position had made the move somewhat effortless. It still looked horribly weird though. "You've come to the right place if you're looking for flowers, and for Veikel. Who is me. And these are my flowers." A flourish of his arms had him motioning towards all the beautiful blooms and buds. Veikel was very proud.

He was also unsure of who exactly Raen was. She must have been someone knew considering his obsession with knowing everyone as best he could; was she from a hold or cothold that had recently been ravaged by Thread? He had a vague understanding that most Weyrs would take in places that had been under their protection (if they, you know, failed to protect) so it'd make sense if she was from there. There was something about her that also seemed a bit familiar, like he could have spotted her once or twice at the Healer Hall. If she was a healer, that is, and not some rando coming in to see his pretty flowers. "Is there something you need I can help with?"

Veikel was always eager to please.

ShinosBee