Smell of numbweed in the morning. (Open)

[blueaid]

On a lovely late summer morning, with the sun rising golden and bright and the weather just starting to show the first inkling of cooling down, the Weyr awakened to one of the worst things imaginable: a numbweed boiling. The smell had driven a half-dozen breakfasters outdoors already.

In her tenure, now but a few weeks advanced, Rivaly had subjected a few unwitting denizens to her own particular brand of healing. Though adept enough at managing the little bumps-and-scrapes common to a Weyr, though successfully delivering one woman of a healthy child and overseeing a few people who'd gotten a bad batch of meatrolls, the rumor had begun to circulate that she was a little odd. No matter what a person went to the infirmary for-- from a headache to a severed finger-- she took copious notes about them, wrote volumes on a clipboard. People seemed to like her, overall, reporting often that she's "a little too smart, seems like, but she's pretty nice, if only I could see what she's scribbling at!"

And then she roused a few of the infirmary staff one morning and made arrangements to replenish the Weyr's stock of numbweed. Which meant the acrid smell wafted through the living cavern where big pots boiled busily over the hearths. The soft, greenish-tint of the simmering goop would have been pretty, a fair match for the woman's eyes actually, if anyone could have stood getting near enough to look at either the salve or her eyes.

Rivaly, her glasses a little smudged and steamed, stood back from the biggest cauldron with a sheer cloth over her nose and mouth, an apron over her clothes, and her hands in fists at the back of her hips. There was still a fair bit of work to be done, what with it being barely breakfast time, and her assistants were starting to look watery-eyed, complaining and hoping for an excuse to escape this chore.

People awoke, wandered in to try and scrounge up breakfast, and groused that it tasted medicinal. She largely ignored them.

[Invisible]

Waking up early was not something easily done by Genet. She would lie in her cot until the very last second she could and then rush around to get ready to see to her morning’s chores. As of yet she had not settled into a particular task. Some days she was helping out in stores, sometimes she washed dishes or cleaned linens or any number of things. The headwoman was probably sick of her by now since she was not easily left in one place, but what could you do?

She finished braiding her hair as she hurried down the corridor to get breakfast. She had barely got the second braid secured when the smell hit her. “Ugh,” she said with a wrinkle of her narrow nose. Still, the bad smell was not going to keep her breakfast. She was starving! Her appetite fled throughout the day until by dinner she was usually not hungry at all, but in the morning she ate enough for any three grown men. Maybe not this morning she thought as she stepped into the living cavern and got a nose full of the medicinal stink.

“Someone’s brilliant idea,” she said to no one in particular as she looked over to where Rivaly stood. It was obviously that woman’s brilliant idea. Genet might not be prone to gossip much, but she heard it all. Rivaly, she guessed, must be that newer healer here. Idly rubbing her thumb over the gold chain around her neck she snorted. “That’s one way not to make friends,” she said as she passed by where the healer stood.

[blueaid]

A few people still milling by the breakfast table agreed in nauseated undertones with Genet's remarks, holding their wrists to their noses, trying to muffle the smell from overwhelming their olfactory senses. Futile, though, and they generally just grabbed something edible-- a roll, some toast, anything-- and hurried out to the bowl to eat without the smell.

Not even the mastermind behind this brilliant scheme was immune to the stench, and Rivaly turned from a gently boiling kettle to wipe her fingers beneath her glasses, over her eyes, taking away a mist of watery-eyed moisture on her knuckles. It so happened that she turned just when Genet made her comment, pivoted so she was facing right at the woman when the words hit her ears.

But she seemed intent on taking the remark with levity, and she pulled the sheer cloth down from over her mouth so there was no denying the sudden sunniness of her smile-- in a room full of foul-smelling gloom-and-doom. "I thought it might be appreciated a bit more than running out of numbweed. That certainly didn't seem like the way to get off to a good start."

[Invisible]

“No, I don’t think so,” Genet decided with a grin as she stopped near Rivaly. “I think someone in enough pain to need numbweed wouldn’t be looking to make friends anyway. Definitely this is ruining your chances.” There was no ruined breakfast yet for Genet who had not filled a plate. She sniffed at the air and then shrugged. “It smells horrid. But I’m starved. Want to take a break?” Then at least she might not make more of the foul smelling stuff.

Either Rivaly would take those few steps towards the tables or not, but Genet recognized an opportunity when she saw one. Everyone in a rush left the field wide open. Grabbing a plate she said to Rivaly, voice adjusted for wherever the healer might be, “Oh! Look! The breakfast rolls are still warm. And lots of icing.” Four of the rolls found their way on her plate. She was hopeful they would not taste like medicine.

[blueaid]

((miffed! Apparently my blackberry ate the post I made this morning!))

"You think not? I like to tell myself that gratitude could foster friendship." Rivaly paused on saying that though, the purse of her lips having little to do with the thick scent in the cavern. "But I suppose I've never had a patient become a friend, so that is a bit delusional, isn't it?" Her chuckle was brief and a little self-reproaching.

Then it reproached elsewhere when Genet suggested a reprieve, the Healer's green eyes cast toward a pair of wilted assistants at a side table, sweating and wiping their eyes. "Much as I might like a respite, I'm afraid the burden falls most squarely on yours-truly. If I had a bit of extra help, perhaps it might go quicker?" Hint, hint.

"It's Genet, isn't it? I'm Rivaly."

[Invisible]

“I haven’t eaten yet,” Genet points out as her plate acquires more items. “And I am supposed to work in the laundry today.” She sounds overly thrilled about folding linens and cleaning other people’s shirts. It is a future task however so she can ignore it in favor of food. Once she has a full plate and a mug of klah heavily sweetened she meanders closer to Rivaly once more. “But if you sent the headwoman a note asking for my help all day and let me have the afternoon to myself…”

She smiled brightly as she made her suggestion. Just trying to help and not just trying to get an afternoon free. A girl has to get something out of being helpful is all or what’s the point? Speaking of points, with much juggling she was able to grab a roll and take a large bite from it. Plate and cup and food looked precariously close to falling to the floor, but she managed somehow. “Eww. It does sorta taste bad. Sweet, but bad. I’ll manage! And, yea, Genet.”

[blueaid]

Doing a little math in her head, her lips going from pursed to smiling, Rivaly guessed in a slow tone, "So, you're asking me to lie to the headwoman, Genet? And say you'll be working all day, but really you'll only be working half a day?" Her eyes narrowed as if she just had to question her own deduction, as if surely Genet couldn't be implying dishonesty. With a wrinkle of her nose, a comedic expression rather than the disgusted one worn by everyone wandering into the cavern, she countered, "I'm almost positive that would not be the way to make friends."

So she drew the mask back up over the lower portion of her face, bright eyes watching Genet take a bite out of a sweetroll in a room that stank for all the world like it was doused in medicine. "Might it be easier if you sat down somewhere and finished that? --No one is eating in here, I've noticed." She added that like she couldn't possibly ascertain why people might choose to avoid the cavern this particular morning, so puzzling!

[Invisible]

“Really? Because I think lying for someone is a sure sign you want to be friends,” Genet replied with an impish grin. “Otherwise how do you know you can depend on someone to lend you a hand?” She seemed not at all put out by the healer refusing to do this. As if she was just trying it on and if it worked awesome and if not she’d lost nothing. Unless Rivaly tattled on her to the Headwoman. Genet shuddered at the thought, but consoled herself with a drink of klah.

“Right. You made the whole place stink. I wonder why no one wants to eat?” Her own nose wrinkled at the smell, but she was determined to have her breakfast. No one and nothing would keep her from enjoying fresh sweet rolls. At the suggestion of seating she looked around. “Huh. Cowards.” Directed at a pair of riders hurrying from the living cavern with their own plates. Finding her own seat she thunked down in it and set her plate on the table before her.

[blueaid]

Rivaly's expression turned 'touche' for a moment at Genet's cleverness, her head ducked and the corner of her eyes crinkled with a one-upped smile that was hidden behind the face-mask. "A point. I should have clarified that I meant making friends with the headwoman-- who seems like she might be a valuable person to have on one's side. Not that you wouldn't be, Genet." There was a quality, a lilt in her voice that teased just a little: For all Rivaly knew, Genet might be an utterly useless person to have on her side.

Returning to the cauldron, taking out a long wooden stick that allowed her to reach well over the boiling brew without the fear of scalding herself skinless, she turned her back halfway on the woman and set to stirring. "You get used to it if you stay around long enough. I hardly--" She coughed a moment, inopportunely for the point she was trying to make, and briefly covered her nose with her palm. "I hardly notice the smell anymore," she concluded with a rough catch in her oh-so-professional voice.

[Invisible]

“Bah. Everyone wants to make friends with the people they think are valuable. What is up with that?” Genet actually frowned a moment. One finger tapped against the side of her mug before she looked at Rivaly once more. “What happened to just making friends because you think you might want to spend time with them? Because they’re fun. Don’t people want to have fun anymore? It’s all work, work, work. We’re not old.” There was a certain tone in her voice that hinted at her complaint not being a new one. Work was fine and necessary, but it was not the end all, be all of existence.

“The only way you’d get used to that smell would be if you burned your nose out on the inside.” Said before she dug heartily into her food. The quality here was much better than what she ever saw at home. Numbweed stink or no Genet was not going to waste the efforts of the cooks. Her stomach would never forgive her if she did. “Anyway I’m no one important so if you’re going to make friends based on that I’m of no import. Just a lower caverns worker with a greenrider brother.”

[blueaid]

Almost absent in the quality of her remark, Rivaly answered, "It's a very natural thing for a person to seek out the people that might be beneficial to a person, personally or professionally. Most people, by nature, want to excel." The rest of Genet's rant seemed to fall on deaf ears. The Healer made no response to them, and her expression was masked-- literally-- while she sweated and stirred the big pot.

Except, after a few seconds of this, she returned to the matter with a succinct question: "Does it bother you to be thought of as 'no one important, Genet?'"

[Invisible]

“Right because people are idiots,” Genet answered with a mouthful of meatroll to obscure her words partially. She smiled cheerfully at her own words because she didn’t really think that, but sometimes she didn’t mind sounding like she was more world weary than she really was. Even after a couple months at the Weyr she still felt like someone’s baby cousin from a backwater cothold. “It’s not like I don’t want to excel anyway,” she added after washing more medicinal tasting food down with medicinal tasting klah. “It’s just not the end all of my existence.”

“I don’t think of myself as unimportant,” she told Rivaly as she stopped eating to look at the other woman. “So what do I care what other people think? They’ll either realize I am a great person or not. If not it’s their loss. I just meant if you’re looking to get ahead then yea I’m not important in the grand scheme of getting ahead. Because I just want to live my life.” So what she wanted was to excel without getting ahead. Or without having to work hard. Well, likely she has no idea what she means.

[blueaid]

In a 'let me get this straight' tone, Rivaly attempted to follow Genet's logic. "Anyone who doesn't think like you and is interested in elevating themselves personally or professionally is an idiot. But you, Genet, admit that you are at least passively interested in elevating yourself in someway-- or in being elevated, preferably with as little effort expended on your part as possible?" The word 'effort' oofed out of her while she stirred the gloopy greenness in the pot, while spindly arms dragged the big paddle through the thickening salve.

Furthermore, "How are people to know that you're a great person if you give them so little to go on? Think, all that I know of you, Genet, is a proclivity to avoid work where possible and a willingness to eat even through a nauseous smell." Rivaly looked back over her shoulder at the other woman. Though most of her face was hidden, her eyes-- behind steamed-over spectacles-- landed humorously on the muddled back-and-forth. As if she felt it necessary to clarify, she added, "I'm not trying to get ahead, not in the way that I think you mean. But I would rather not fall on the Headwoman's black-list. Self-preservation is part of the human condition, after all."

[Invisible]

“I am a woman of many mysteries,” Genet said to wave away all her inconsistencies. Making sense is not something she tries hard to do in the morning. Not before breakfast and a gallon of klah. One hand gestured towards her plate. “The food here is good. It shouldn’t go to waste. And it’s way better than what we had at home. If I’d known the food was this good I’d have run away rather than wait for a real chance to leave.”

She didn’t give much thought to the way she sounded. “People tend to idiocies. I am not any different than anyone else in that regard. It’s morning. I haven’t even had my klah. I should not be expected to make sense.” At least Genet thought she should not. Still, this woman was obviously different so she tried to explain herself.

“The thing is, Rivaly, I don’t put a lot of thought into the future right now. I’m still feeling it all out. Which makes me unsure and that makes other people think I’m no good to them. Most people by my age are all settled is all.” She was not settled in the least, but again appeared unbothered by it. “Anyway we just met. You can’t expect to know anything about someone after just meeting them.”

[blueaid]

As long as they were going to discuss the idiosyncrasies of humankind, Rivaly ought to point out, "Actually, I can expect to know a great deal about someone after just meeting them. You're--" She shook her head hurriedly, chased away that whole line of thought on the grounds of it being way too complicated for their collective state of haziness: Rivaly in the middle of boiling numbweed and Genet not having had her klah yet.

"But. As you say, you're still feeling it all out, Genet. The pressure of society might suggest that at your age-- nineteen or twenty? You ought to be settled, yet you're not." Which begged a very obvious question, one that Rivaly was sure to ask once she withdrew the paddle from the cauldron and set it to one side, a coating of nearly-cooked numbweed salve sliding down to make a puddle on the floor where it rested. She turned back toward Genet's table before continuing, pulling away the mask again, swiping at the veneer of steam that stood out on her forehead and cheeks and misted her glasses. "What are you doing at the Weyr? You said you waited for a 'real chance to leave.' I'm guessing that means you were searched?"