Candidate Barracks - Ista Weyr
     Natural stone pillars rise from the smooth floor to the high ceiling in this large cavern, its space easily enough to accommodate more than a hundred cots and presses with them. Spaced along even rows and broken up every ten or so by a square table with chairs surrounding it, these cots are almost always neatly made - no doubt for fear of a surprise inspection - with their presses shut at the foot of them. Laundry bins and choreboards fill the recesses, as do a few more personal items left here and there by those who currently inhabit the barracks.
     There's a home-spun quality to these barracks, as if those who live here have taken a liking to their environment. Or perhaps it's just that the decorations - hung on the walls by means of lively tapestries - are cheerful and contented, meant to brighten the hearts of those who have most likely been taken from their comfortable beds and instilled in these noisier barracks.
 

Asixier smiles at Catriona, He kicks off his dusty boots on the ground near the base of his cot. His dirty dust covered pants are dropped too along with his undergarments. The dirty clothes are collected from the floor and the cot and Asixier walks over in his turn-day suit to the basket near Catriona's cot and the dirty clothes are tossed in the basket. "The dirty Laundry, Fellow Candidate Catriona." And he turns and walks back to his cot and begins to get dressed.

"It's not strange logic. It's common sense," Catti shoots back at Riddyn. So maybe it's common sense in some strange warped twisted way. Who can tell. Upon hearing a greeting, she looks up and scrutinizes the latest arrival for any signs of dirt. "Heyla, Abalonie. If you have any dirty clothes just stick them in that basket over there... oh, I have that jacket you let me borrow too. I cleaned it and everything." Her grin of thanks doesn't last long, however, when Asixier strips down and approaches. After an intial startled blink at his brazenness, she plants balled hands on her hips and regards him with the most bland of expressions. "You should think about maybe working in the stables a little more, build up those muscles," she advises his retreating back.

Goran is shocked, of course, by Asixier's apparent ability to strip in front of women, and his face turns beet red again. At the same time, a grimace of disgust covers his face as he notes his fellow candidate also isn't going to bathe before getting dressed again. "If y'went to the trouble of stripping, y'could go and wash" is muttered, his eyes averted now.

Riddyn just looks innocently at Catti, then blinks in surprise at Asixier. "Bold one, isn't he?" is muttered softly. Then he smiles warmly at Abalonie. "Yeah. Belena and Aiareth did, the other day. Aparently Aiareth decided I needed to be promoted." he shrugs happily.

Tahayari enters the barracks toting a hamper of cleaned clothes; upon sight of the spectacle Asixier presents, the young man hastily looks elsewhere, blanching while almost inaudibly bemoaning his fate: "Crazy weyrpeople. What'd I ever do to get stuck here with 'em?"

Asixier glances over at Goran. "I was going to get dressed and then go to the bathing pools, But I have nothing against walking there in the buff." He strips off the new undergarments and begins to collect his clean clothes. "Anyone else care to join me?" A glance is sent around the room and when he hears Tahayari's comment he replies. "I was raised as a crafter at a hold." He slaps his thigh, "You know Cat, You are right, I should work out more." With that he heads out to the bathing pools.

Abalonie blinks at Catriona, then looks down at her own dirty clothing and blushes a soft pink. She nods a little, then, on her way to her cot, she smiles over towards Riddyn and giggles softly, "Well, I'm glad you're here.. I can hide behind you on the Stands." Her cheeks, still soft pink, darken a little bit as she says this, and she disappears behind behind a little screen next to her cot, emerging a few moments later with a towel wrapped around her and her bundle of clothes in one hand. She is braiding her hair, the clothes under her arm, and she walks, bare-footed, over towards Catti.

Riddyn smiles at Abalonie, politely averting his eyes, even though she _is_ covered by a towel. "Sure thing Abbie. I wouldn't mind in the least." And now it's his turn for a rose tinge to adorn his cheeks.

It's a valient effort, trying to keep from laughing. But Catriona finally succumbs. Blandness is swept away with an attack of the giggles when the girl falls back on her cot, dirty laundry forgotten in amusement at the various reactions to Asixier's nudity. Poor holdbred dears... After a few minutes, she pulls herself together and sits up, wiping tears from her eyes as she smiles at Abalonie. "I have the jacket in my 'press somewhere, I think," she remarks raggedly, still having problems getting her breath. A wave is sent around the other girl for Tahayari's benefit, no doubt uncomfortably singling the young man out for attention.

Abalonie bites down on her lower lip to keep from giggling herself, her stomach shaking a little beneath the fluffy little towel - towels are cute when they are fluffy. She plops her dirty clothes down just where they belong without taking her hands away from her hair, turning back to smile at Riddyn, "Oh, good.. maybe I can even avoid falling down this time." Another deepening blush, and this must be the reason she keeps her bangs down, even when her hair is plaited. Then, she brightens again in a smile and has the perfect reason to skip out, "I'm going to go get a bath. I'm all dirty." She wrinkles her nose a little, blushes once more, and walks out of the barracks with her head bowed a little.

Tahayari pulls a face after Asixier's comment, grumbling to himself, "No one in /my/ Hold ever went around without clothing on." He hurries over to his cot, gaze firmly kept upon his footing, not on naked men or towel-clad women. Catriona's wave is caught, however, and after a brief, reluctant hesitation, the Candidate nods his own quick greeting in her direction before setting his laundry basket on his cot and busying himself with sorting and folding the articles of clothing.

Goran is in permanent blush mode, what with all of the people undressing about him. Tahayari gets a feeling look as Goran feels the same way at the moment. "I've already had m'bath" is noted for Asixier's benefit, declining the invitation. Boots buffed, he sets them aside and goes over to the other shy man. "Y'need help with those? I've finished m'chores for the day." And folding clothes would be soothing.

Riddyn watches Abbie leave out of he corner of his eye, and lets heave a sigh. Absently looking around for something to do - he doesn't exactly want to follow her out like a lost pup.. OK, so maybe he does - he decides his cot needs straightening. Hmm. Too bad it's already painfully neat.

Abalonie heads out to the southern cavern.

Seeing as how the worst dirt offenders have now been dealt with, Catti feels confident enough to pull the nasket of clean clothing from beneath the cot and begin the process of folding too. The dirty basket is handled by corraling Nyros when he speeds by, perpetually aflutter, and sends the boy off to the laundry, basket in tow. "You should follow her," she notes, sotto voice, to Riddyn. Not only is she a busybody, but she's dangerously observant too. Scary, no? Hiding a smile behind a look of utmost serenity, the young woman folds and folds and folds...and eyes Riddyn, to see if he'll take the advice.

Tahayari glances up as he hears Goran's offer, and even manages a swift flicker of a smile. "Yeah," he responds simply as he digs out a tunic and begins to fold. "That'd be great." He pauses, brow furrowed with thought; after a moment, he ventures, "I met you, right? Geeran? Jiron? Was that it?" Uncertain, he queries, "Am I close?"

Riddyn glances over at Catti, startled, blinking like a watchwher exposed to sudden light. "Excuse me?"

"You should /follow/ her," Catti says, more slowly this time and in a louder tone of voice. "Go talk to her. She was blushing as much as you are right now. Always a good sign." It's becoming harder and harder to hide that smile, hints of it creeping into her eyes, causing them to crinkle a little at the edges. "No harm in talking, right? It's not against the rules." Looking smug at ladleing out such sound advice, she returns to making sure each shirt has perfectly straight creases as they're folded up into tidy packages.

Goran chuckles at Tahayari's attempts at getting his name right, grinning back shyly. "Almost....Goran. I'll call y'Yari, if y'don't mind? I can't quite remember the rest of that mouthful y'call a name." So they are even. Large hands pick up a shirt, folding it skillfully with surprising ease, and he starts a pile. Catriona is sent a sidelong glance...good. She seems distracted for the moment.

Riddyn quits fussing, and sighs. "Is it that obvious Catti?"

"Goran," repeats the Igenite, nodding once. "Got it. And -- yeah. G'head and call me that. Almost everyone else does." Here, a rueful grin is interposed between one phrase and another as he adds, "No one gets it right the first time, anyways." Fingers dig out a second simple tunic, and Tahayari deftly creases it here, and here, before settling it upon the shirt Goran just folded.

Catriona is quite distracted for the moment. How long it will last is anyone's best guess, but for now, her interest lies in playing matchmaker. Poor Riddyn. "To me it is, but then, I have to work with the girls in the kitchen all day. Or I did, anyways. I won't tell anyone though, so if you /don't/ want to go after her, no one will realize maybe... She's probably pretty busy anyways, talking to Asixier right now," she says, utterly unconcerned as she shakes out the next shirt and inspects it for flaws. Let's ammend her resume to observant, nosy, /sneaky/ busybody, shall we?

Goran continues his folding, almost mechanically, as he attempts a conversation with Tahayari. "Y'tend to embarrass easily, don't you." It's a statement, rather than a question. He's noticed it before. a rueful smile plays on his lips as he talks. "I do too. That one.." he indicates Catriona, his tone hushed. "Wanted me t'strip in front of her, so she could have m'clothes. And that one.." He indicates the newly arrived Asixier. "Did it like it was no big deal. I ain't used t'such..."

Riddyn blushes, "Do you think...?" He sighs, shaking his head. "Heh. Well, if I don't, I might never..." he trails off as Asixier enters. "Alright, Catti, I'll go find her."

Asixier walks in wearing nice clean clothes and is clean himself. But he is carrying a pile of 4 or 5 towels which he takes over to Catriona's basket and piles them on. The towels are lightly soiled but still need to be cleaned. "And here is some more for you to launder Candidate Catriona." And he turns and walks to his cot and fixes it so it looks presentable. "Since I am done with my chores, I think I shall go check out the eggs." An invitation for anyone to join him is given.

Tahayari doesn't need to respond to Goran's pseudo-question -- he just flushes. A sidelong glance is shot towards the other candidate Goran directs his attention to, and he fairly gapes as the other young man informs him of the current happenings. "You're kidding." His voice, too, is kept suitably quiet as he remarks, half-joking, "I always knew there was some fact in all those rumors I heard as a kid about the Weyrs."

"Sounds like you have the right idea," Catriona finally allows her grin free rein, and beams at Riddyn in encouragement. "It can't hurt. Luck." The last shirt is finished and folded neatly, set atop the pile just in time for Asixier's latest contribution to be noted. Just wait until HE has laundry duty. Oh yes. Not saying a word, Catti drags the basket over to the door and leaves it there for later. /She/ is going to take a break, thank you. Returning to her cot, she digs around in the press for a loose linen shift to wear as night clothes, and drapes it over her pillow. Don't look! She's getting changed!

Riddyn heads out to the southern cavern.
Asixier heads out to the southern cavern.

Goran must amend his comments somewhat, so they appear more truthful. "Well, she wanted m'clothes. They were dirty from cleaning hearths. But I couldn't just strip in front of her. Ain't seemly." He's holdbred, alright. A flush colors his cheeks, too, as he sees Catriona about to do some stripping of her own. He averts his eyes, busily folding clothes. "That one didn't seem t'think it so." He indicates Asixier with a bit of a tilt to his head, and a frown. "He could help." is added, disapprovingly. Work first, play later. That's Goran's motto. "So...y'liking candidacy so far?" This a question for Tahayari.

"Oh." Tahayari considers, skepticism playing upon his expression. "Well, even so..." Conservative, he nods briskly at Goran's conclusion, echoing, "Definately not." He keeps his attention to the quickly emptying basket, not various candidates who happen to be changing. "Huh? Do I like it?" Here, Yari makes a face. "No." At least he's honest, even if his statements are tactlessly blunt. "I don't like dragons. Why would I like Candidacy?"

In response to Goran's remark about Asixier -- you bet that Catti was listening in on that too -- the girl chirps, "His job is to make my life insufferable. He's actually pretty good at it." This last is a tad muffled, as she's busy with the task of pulling the shift down overhead, and her arms are just a little tangled in the loose fabric. Struggling slightly, she staggers off balance for a moment before yanking the garment down and smoothing it in place. It's safe to look now. Her own dirty clothing is gathered up and trotted over to the appropriate basket, for dumping. "Are the Holds really that different?" she asks both young men curiously.

Goran blinks at Tayahari, somewhat surprised. "Y'don't like dragons? Why not?" He frowns a bit. "Y'were here before y'were searched. If y'don't like the Weyr, why come?" The logic escapes him, it seems. As for Catriona....her input is grimaced at. "He shouldn't treat y'like his servant." is noted, with a slight peek. Oh, good. She's covered. "What about holds?"

"Yes!" Oops. Yari speaks a little too loudly, and promptly blushes as he's wont to do. Modifying his tone, the Igenite primly says, "People don't run around without things on when others are present. Among other things." Those 'other things' aren't elaborated on; Tahayari plucks the last tunic from the basket, instead, and folds it neatly. Attention slides back to Goran, and he hesitates before responding. "I...I don't know. I just don't." Cheeks redden, again, but Yari bravely goes on. "I didn't want to come. My fa made me."

"He does it to annoy me, as he's just a little full of himself," Catti confides, flashing a grin at both of them. Clambering onto her cot, she curls up against the top end, snuggled back against the pillow, and then cants her head to the right in a quizzical gesture. "I've never been out of the Weyr, but from what you two are saying, the Holds really don't sound all that nice. Not liking dragons, having a heart seizure at seeing a little skin... it doesn't make much sense to me, I have to admit. Why'd you agree to Search if dragons scare you, Yari?"

Goran sends Catriona a frown. "Holds are fun enough, if y'haven't been made free like the Weyrs do. I like dragons, though, and I can usually avoid the...looser aspects of Weyrlife, which suits me fine. M'mother did not approve of men and women sharing such...things...before hand fastin." Cotholds, if anything, are even more straightlaced then the larger Holds.

Tahayari collects his stack of clean, folded vestments and begins to put them away in his clothespress, pulling out various drawers and organizing the shirts, pants, and underthings with a hopelessly perfectionist air. He turns his head to peer over towards Catriona, an eyebrow quirking with disbelief. "Never left? Well..." He takes it upon himself to educate her while putting the clothes away, beginning, "Holds are plenty of fun. People just generally keep the private aspects of their life, like bathing, to themselves." He's less eager to answer the question about Search, and after a moment of silence grumpily intones, "The blue would've eaten me if I'd said no."

"We have more important things to worry about in the Weyr than what happens privately between two people," Catriona chides gently, smiling in response to Goran's frown. "Besides... what are you going to do if you Impress, and your dragon takes over your ah... natural inclination? You can't very well handfast every rider you bed with in that case." On to Tahayari's arguments, which she gleefully goes after with the same serene smile used on Goran. "Everyone's got a body. Therefore, I don't have anything different from any other woman, so why blush? You and Goran are put together better than Asixier, but you still have the same equipment. Why get flustered, if you've seen it before? And dragons don't eat people."

Goran nods in agreement with Tahayari, looking at the tags on the clothing and placing the clean things on the proper cots for their owners to put away later, then straightens his own cot. There. Chores are done. Catriona's words, however, bring a blush, and then a shrug. "I'll cross that bridge when I come t'it.." is noted gruffly. "No sense borrowin trouble, as m'mother always said. Chances are I'll be left on t'sands again, like last time." He doesn't seem unduly upset by the thought. "And I blush, cause I haven't ever /seen/ a woman. We don't do things like that. Not where I come from." His flush rises again as he says this. "T'women have their own baths, and the men theirs." And separate dorms, too.
Goran adds, "And it wasn't the sight of Asixier...it was his dropping his trous in front of you."

Abalonie comes in from the southern cavern.

"Because...because..." Tahayari, flustered, just scowls darkly and repeats what Goran said: "Not where I come from, either." The clothespress is closed, and the Igenite stuffs the empty basket under his cot before smoothing down the invisible wrinkles of the blankets atop the bed. "Yeah, yeah. That's what everyone says -- dragons don't eat people. But I know better. It's just some huge secret that everyone's trying to cover up."

Catriona's grin becomes positively huge. "Well," she says to Goran, "I have to admit I wasn't very tickled at that either. There are other things I'd rather look at, trust me. But we don't walk around /wanting/ to ogle naked flesh, here. We just don't faint if it happens. There is a difference, you know." Yari is then regarded with some surprise. A lot of surprise, to be honest. "You really think they eat people? Um. I can swear to you, on whatever you want me to swear on, that they don't. My father's blue once said we were too small, anyways. But I think he was teasing. Da seemed amused by it."

Abalonie walks back into the barracks, her feet and legs dry enough not to leave wet footprints, although her hair hangs about her cheeks and shoulders in a wet, loose tangle. She is wearing, over top of a fluffy white towel, an over-large red shirt, easily indentifiable as not being hers considering she has the sleeves pushed back and they are still covering her hands to the fingers, and it goes down past her hips. She is walking with her head bowed as if in thought, but, hearing Catti and Tahayari, she lifts her head and smiles, "Hi.." Still bare-foot, she walks over the cold floor towards her cot.

Goran isn't going to faint at the sight of a naked body, just blush beet red. "It ain't the same when y'aren't used to it" is noted for her benefit. "It'll take time t'relax, I s'pose." Or something. Tahayari's words bring a look of surprise on his face, too. "She's right, y'know. They don't eat people. They can't. So Kassandra told me."

"Oh, I don't know." Tahayari, self-concious, scowls irritably at those wrinkles only he can see while crimson taints his complexion once more. "But I'm not going to risk it." Lucky for him, he's rescued from the necessity of further responses by the entrance of Abalonie, and he quirks a relieved, shy smile her way and greets simply, "Hey."

Reinforcements! While Abalonie is not the most... aggressive of people, at least she understands where Catti is coming from when it comes to the Weyr mindset. Maybe. Hopefully. These two young men are being more stubborn than most people are when arguing with the girl. Nodding enhustiastically to Goran, she says, "Being embarassed by it usually goes away. Right, Abalonie? As for being scared of dragons, well... I guess you'd probably have to Impress if it's that bad." She does look with some sympathy upon Yari. Poor thing, to feel like that. Not that her pity is probably helping matters any.

Goran isn't going to lose his embarrassment anytime soon, nope. It has, after all, been two Turns since he came to the Weyr. Abalonie, despite Catriona's hopes of a helpful hand, gets a wave. "Did y'enjoy your bath?" is asked politely, even as eyes avert from her half-garbed form to look at Tahayari. "Y'will have t'see for yourself. I was a bit nervous of dragons when I first came here." is said with a modicum of understanding. He still doesn't think dragons eat people, though.

Abalonie blinks, pausing, as she looks first at Tahayari, giving him a smile, then to Catti, her expression mildly confused, "Being embarrassed isn't always something you can get out of, Catti.. but it has to happen, eventually, I guess." Then, she smiles, "And dragons are not scary at all. Think of them as really big, really pretty people that can only talk to one person." She ponders this for a moment, then blushes a soft red. She is glad to be saved by Goran, for she smiles over at him and nods, "Oh, yes. I feel clean now.." She hugs the large red shirt around her tightly, however, for standing in a towel is, by far, not the warmest way to live.

Rather than being reassured -- if that was the intent of Catriona's words in the first place --, Tahayari blanches and states firmly, "I am not going to Impress. No way. I'm just going to go back to Igen and live there, as soon as my da says..." He hesitates, fumbles for words and hastily corrects, "Well, I'll just leave sometime after the Hatching, I'm sure."

"Abalonie's exactly right. They're just like that, kind of. Da's blue liked having his belly scratched. He'd croon like a hatchling if you did that. How is that scary? And you can't tell if you'll Impress or not. The dragons come out of their shell knowing, Yari. You can't prevent or control that. If one wants you, it gets you, no arguments allowed." Catti rolls over onto her back, wriggling around on her cot until she can regard the others from an upside down vantage. "But if it makes you two feel any better, I promise not to prance around wearing nothing. I can at least help with that," she says with a reverse grin.

Goran is having a bit of trouble picturing dragons as just pretty people, and shakes his head, a faint smile sent to Abalonie. "I think I like dragons t'be dragons, actually. Maybe if we don't push him, Yari will get t'like them all on his own." After all, no need to badger the poor man. "But I thank you, Catriona, for your offer. I'd appreciate such modesty. I apologize if m'upbringing causes y'inconvenience, however." He really cannot help his shy modesty. Yari himself gets a kindly look as Goran notices his blanching. "If y'like, I'll stand with y'on the sands." He's kind of large. You can even hide behind him.

Belena comes in from the southern cavern.
Rhire comes in from the southern cavern.

Rhire walks in, swallowing a bit nervously as she does so. She looks around the room, having never been there before.

Belena marches into the middle of certain chaos, "Make way, new candidate moving in!" She picks up a particularly young candidate who giggles wildly as he is placed gently out of the way. She gestures around, "Rhire, if you can find an empty cot, it's yours."

Abalonie giggles softly and says, as if reading Goran's mind, "Last Clutch, I hid behind someone.." She blushes softly, then hides behind her curtained cot, popping out a few moments later fully dressed - although, she is still wearing Riddyn's red shirt. When Belena comes in, she blinks curiously at her and backs up against a wall, holding her hands against her chest.

Catriona, her head still hanging upside down over the edge of her cot, chuckles at Goran's statement. "No inconvenience, really. It's not like I look for opportunities to strip down in front of others." The other part of Goran's remark is mulled over for several moments before she gives a jiggly sort of nod in agreement. To Yari, she says, "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable. It's just hard for me to understand how you must feel. Friends?" Of course, if he answers, it's completely lost in the distraction of Belena entering, new victim in tow. "I think there's one over on the righthand edge, ma'am!" she calls out, eyeing Rhire curiously.

"Yeah, yeah. That's what they all say," Yari says dismissively as he stubbornly clings to superstitious beliefs. He plops onto his cot and prods the scuffed boots from his feet. "And just watch -- I'm not going to Impress or nothin'. I'll...run away or something if one of those dragons come after me." His nose wrinkles. "I've heard that they're ugly." He mimics Goran once more by tossing over a vaguely sheepish grin towards the upside-down woman and intoning, "Thanks." Glancing back to the other male Candidate, he queries hopefully, "Really? That'd be great." Expect Tahayari to be cowering behind Goran most of the time he's on the Sands. He pauses, peering towards the newest arrivals, and immediately lapses into people-shy silence.

Goran chuckles, about to respond to Tahayari, but is distracted by Belena's entrance with Rhire. "Congratulations" is called to the newcomer, with a polite nod to the rider, and then he belatedly responds to first Catriona, then Tahayari. "Well, I still appreciate it" is noted, and then "Y'are more than welcome, Yari. But don't try t'run. The dragons and their rider's will only bring y'back. See, if there is a hatchling out there who wants you, it will try t'follow, or so Kass says, and might get hurt doin it. Y'wouldn't want that, would you?" He grins. "And all babies are fairly homely when they first arrive in t'world. M'sister was ugly as anything." But she's a fairly pretty little thing now.

Belena grins as ma'ams are tossed in her direction, "Makes me sound so old," she directs at Rhire, "Just plain Belena is fine. Assistant Weyrlingmaster is too long but if you feel it necessary, 'Greenrider' is the most formal I'll accept." She winks and waits for Rhire to find her spot. She glances over at the other candidates and, noting Catriona she calls out, "Cat, just so you know, Asixier spilled it about you getting naked, good luck!"

Rhire scratches the back of her head, smiling nervously. She nods to the rest of the candidates in the room, following along after Belena.

Ugly? That's really just too much. Catriona was tolerance incarnate when Yari mentioned that whole dragon eating humans myth, but she's not going to take slurs on their appearance. Nope. "That wasn't a nice thing to say!" she shoots over at her fellow candidate, scowling a little. Of course, the expression looks ridiculous, given the funny angle she's looking at him from. "Here everyone is, trying to be nice because you're refusing to see the truth, and you go and sling insults around." Hmph. Goran's handling that ugly remark much better than Catti is. Fortunately, Belena serves as distraction from temper. Sitting bolt upright, she blinks at the rider, jaw dropping. "What??"

Abalonie turns her hand out, facing away from her over-sized dressed self, the neck of the shirt falling down over her own gray clothing. She bends her fingers shyly at Rhire, "Hi.." She then turns her palms back against eachother, one over the other. She then quiets down, looking over towards Catti and everyone else, curiously.

Belena grins wickedly, "Ya got caught, girl! Don't worry, extra work detail can be fun."

Belatedly, Tahayari calls back over to Catriona, "Friends." Oops. Er. Maybe not. He blushes aplenty, protesting, "I was just repeating what I've heard!" He shrinks back some upon his cot, sliding his glance over towards Goran and stage-whispering, "She's more liable to maim me than some little dragon that I can probably outrun."

Rhire makes her way over to an empty cot, sitting down on the end of it and continuing to look around.

"But I /didn't/," Catriona protests, pushing herself off of the cot into a standing position. Just watch that face turn bright red in anger! "/He/ got naked, to annoy me about wanting to keep the fresh laundry clean. He even walked naked to the bathing pools!" Another thing to add to the list of things that drive Catti crazy: Lies.

Goran has a headache, what with all of this talk, and now Catriona's squealing. He clears his throat, a bit uncomfortable, but needing to speak anyway. "Actually, greenrider....Catriona never did strip. Asixier was t'one who did so, in front of all of us. Catriona just wanted his clothes t'wash...." He doesn't mention that the other male candidate also dumped a whole bunch of extra work on Cat. Tahayari gets a smile, and a pat on the back. "Don't y'worry..she's more bark than bite, I think."

Belena laughs, "Oooh, okay, I've got it all clear now. So he got naked for you! I see." Perhaps she already knew that and just wanted to see Cat squirm.
Rhire chuckles, watching Catti with some sort of twisted amusement. She grins, happy that Belena's not teasing /her/ anymore.

"You think," Tahayari repeats darkly. "Just because she hasn't bit anyone yet doesn't mean she won't sometime. And what if it's me?" He hushes to listen to the other conversation, lying flat upon his stomach on the cot and propping his head on his hands.

Kelbiba walks into the barracks.

Belena grins, "Well, since I've gotten your attention, why don't we have a little rule review session. Rhire needs to hear the rules anyway." Not to mention that it means she won't have to say them again for the umpteenth time.

Squirm? Catti's not squirming, she's fuming. Not at Belena, of course. Belena's only the messenger. But it would probably be best if one ex-woodsmith apprentice didn't make an appearance in the barracks any time soon. "Yes ma'am. Greenrider. Belena." she sputters through clenched teeth. She certainly looks like she'd bite if provoked right now. Yup. Slowly, carefully, she returns to sitting on her cot, bunched hands settling in her lap. Listening mode on, mostly.

Kelbiba sits on her cot listening.

Goran has to laugh softly at Tahayari's unease. "Y'just should be polite, and not say things against her dragons, cause she obviously likes em. Then she won't bark or bite." is suggested. He turns his attentions back to Belena with a nod at her desire. "As you wish, greenrider. I ain't one t'break the rules." Nope. Goran of the straight and narrow, that's him.

Belena claps, "Excelent! Who would like to start?" Her eyes travel across the faces before her, "Hmmmm...Abalonie? Is that you hiding over there? Would you like to share one rule with us?"

"I /was/ being polite," Tahayari shoots back at the other man, grumbling a few more phrases beneath his breath. And then his focus moves to Belena, and he promptly shuts up.

Goran adds in a whisper, for Yari's benefit. "Not if y'call her dragons ugly" before he, too, goes quiet, eyes turning to Abalonie expectantly.

Tahayari can't help but hiss back at Goran, "They're not hers. They're not anybody's. They're not even out of their shells."

Overhearing the whispered conversation nearby, Catti can't help but smile. Just a little, but it's a start. Color fading from her face, she takes a deep breath and relaxes -- not that she's not still mad at Asixier, mind you. But there is a time and a place. Settling back into the cot, she listens quietly to the rule recitation. Actually, for once, waiting for her turn to speak up.

Abalonie clears her throat softly, although for a moment she tries to sink into the wall, uneffectively. She recites, "There is to be no physical contact whatsoever while you are a candidate."

Rhire's eyes go wide, then her expression saddens quite noticably. She sighs softly.

Goran has noticed that Cat has the same ability as he and Yari to blush, given the right situation, and it brings a smile to his face, although a "Shhh!" emerges for Tahayari's benefit. "No, but she thinks they are...that makes all t'difference." is noted back, before he directs his attention back to Belena...and Abalonie, nodding approvingly.

Belena laughs, "That's right, which is why I think a certain young man was rather disappointed when Aiareth snatched you up just now." She winks at Rhire and then turns back to the candidates, "Next rule, mmmm, how about Yari. Care to share with us another one?"

Rhire just lies back on her cot, closing her eyes and listening to the rest of the rules.

"I do not!" Catriona gets in on the whispering by hissing this little addition towards the two young men. Rather than being annoyed by such opinions being assigned to her, she's grinning openly now though. Probably a good sign. Ah ha. See? Things do work out for the best. That'll teach Yari to ...to... well... something. Public speaking is enough punishment for his vague crimes.

Whatever retort Tahayari was about to whisper to Goran is stifled as he glances towards the greenrider with a faintly guilty expression and a rise in cheek-color. "Oh. Yes. Right. You can't leave the Weyr unless accompanied by a rider." A small grimace follows the recitation of the rule; this one is his least favorite, as one could obviously guess from his countenance.

Goran sends Tahayari a commiserating glance. Figures he would memorize that one. Catriona is next to get a look, this one amused, and a smile, before he returns his attention to Belena. Two down..who gets the next turn?
Abalonie sits down on her cot, her legs crossing over one another and her hands folding lightly in her lap. She watches everyone around her with her usual quiet, patient curiosity.

Of course Yari remembers that rule. It's the one that means his plans for escaping the Weyr are out.

For the next one, Catti speaks up with a cheerful, "You have to do all of your chores before you can rest for the day. The chores are listed on that board over there." The girl nods towards said board. Figures that she would choose that one, perfectionist in the making that she is.