Studies

[petra]

There was a flurry of wind as a large body set itself gracefully down in the field just outside Tale. The whirlwind formed by Cyra's arrival slowly dissipated as he settled his bulk onto the dusty ground, his rider unstrapping herself in a jingle of buckles and rings. She sat up, pushing hairs that had come loose during the flight back with a free gloved hand. She slapped Cyra's hide with the other and slid down as he lifted a leg for her to climb off of.

"Good winds today, dearheart." She remarked as she hit the ground with a thud and a puff of dust. Cyra rumbled in the back of his throat and shook himself, spines clicking as they rose and fell back into place. Petra laughed, undoing all the straps that dangled from her person and stuffing them into an oversized pack on her back. She undid the ties on the front, withdrawing her staff. She would use it for walking while she was on the ground and in civilization. She surveyed the village. It looked much the same as it did when she left five years ago to study wild dragons in their natural habitats, and that in itself was a relief. It told her that attacks had been sparse in the years she was gone. She poked her staff into the dirt a bit, then started forth.

Cyra followed, his gait surprisingly silent for such a large dragon. His wings were folded tightly to his back, tail swishing in slight irritation. He had nearly left Petra when she told him where they were headed, and it still galled him that they were back with so many people. He snorted a lick of fire as they walked. Petra turned back to eye him, and he stared back with his green gaze. She sighed and kept walking.

"We'll be back out there before you know it. I just need a helper; my book is getting too big not to have someone to help organize. I would like to say hello to Ivar while I'm here too."

She smiled at that thought. Ivar was her teacher, an old man who had passed his love of dragons on to his students. Most of them had gone on to begome dragon veterinarians, but Petra had never been bale to make up her mind. She was looking forward to seeing him and showing him the large collection of notes that would someday be a book about dragon behaviors.

She walked into town, narrowly avoiding stepping on a Terrible Terror chased by two laughing children. She walked on cobbles that hadn't quite been washed of scorch marks, and some of the hosues were very singed-looking. Still, the whole town had an aura of happiness that all but concealed the greater worry. She turned down a side street and found Ivar's home, a place where he studied and taught the non-practical side of his lessons. She walked up to the door and knocked, frowning slightly when there was no answer. A look in the thick window told her why. There was a layer of dust over the furniture, and everything was straightened up. It was obvious no one had been there in some time. Her face fell, and she turned to lean agains the door frame. Cyra nudged her with his snout and she stumbled a little, a small smile appearing on her face again. "Off, you lump. Let's find us an apprentice, then."

[Mothy]

Apparently, young girls needed more color to their faces...Mouse watched her feet as she slowly walked down the road, kicking at a pebble as she did. She'd been perfectly content to sit indoors, stare out the window at the clouds for the day, but her aunt wasn't. Auntie Hilde had pulled her away from the window and practically shoved her out the door about a half hour ago, telling her she needed more color, to go outside.

Because apparently the light tan and darker spots of brown weren't color enough.

"Maybe she means I need to be red...or pink," Mouse mumbled to herself, lifting her hands to touch her face. She noticed the clothes-pin on her left sleeve was coming loose, and stopped in her track to adjust it. Wish Auntie knew how to mend things properly... she found herself thinking. Maybe that was what she could do wit her life...Mouse should learn to sew and mend, so maybe she should make clothes. Oh, but that might not work out...most families wanted to make thier own clothes, didn't they? Mouse wasn't quite sure anymore--maybe her family had been weird?

Finally, the pin was holding the bunched-up cloth more securely; Mouse shook her arm a bit to make sure it held. When it did, she continued on her way, no real destination in mind. You didn't need to go somewhere specific to get color, right? "Eh?" she mumbled, looking up and tensing slightly. She'd initially stopped and looked because she thought she heard a voice--not so unusual, but she'd had a nagging feeling this one seemed familiar. Slightly different, and you couldn't remember where you heard it or who it came from, but still familiar.

She'd tensed up because she saw the dragon. That thing looked huge! And it was right there in the village! Right in front of her! Mouse hastily ducked her head down again, taking a few shuffling steps forward, intending to move past it...and then hastily stepping back again. Don't be scared...Don't be scared, it's okay... she thought to herself, taking some deep breaths. Just...go...now! Mouse started walking quickly again, not going five steps forward before trying to run for it instead of walking. Unfortunately she got her feet tangled in each other and found herself crashing to the ground. "Ah!" she cried out as her chin scraped the ground.

[petra]

Cyra snorted what was unmistakeably a laugh as the young girl-child in front of him tripped and fell. Petra looked up at both the girl's squeak and Cyra's snort, her eyes widening when she saw Mouse on the ground. She hurried over to help Mouse up.

"Oooh, that looks like a nasty fall there...Are you all right? I can take you to a healer if you need it." Petra said, eyeing the scrape on Mouse's chin as she pulled the shorter girl up. It didn't look too bad, but things like that had a way of getting infected...

"You should at least clean that scrape off. Elsewise you could catch a fever and swelling."

She shifted her pack on her back slightly, twitching her head to get her heavy braid out of the way. Cyra yawned, completely uninterested in the goings-on of the humans around him. Mouse had been mildly entertaining when she'd seen him and attempted to run away, but now that she had stopped moving, she held no interest for him whatsoever.

[Mothy]

Mouse squeezed her eyes shut as she was picked up again, shaking her head a bit. "N-No...don't need a healer..." she mumbled, opening her eyes a bit. They looked a little teary from the stinging pain on her chin, but she didn't actually cry. She'd been in worse pain before. Mouse took the opportunity to take a closer look at the other person, trying to ignore the creature with her. Hm...this person looked vaguely familiar, like their voice, but it wasn't ringing any bells yet. least she couldn't place a name to the face. "'m okay..." she mumbled.

"You should at least clean that scrape off. Elsewise you could catch a fever and swelling."

"Oh..." Mouse pulled at the clothes-pin on one of her sleeves, shaking her arm until the sleeve came loose and fell, covering her entire hand save for her fingertips. Shutting her eyes again, the girl lifted her cloth-covered hand and started rubbing at her chin, wincing a bit as she applied pressure to it. Her shirt should've been clean enough..."Like this, huh?" she asked quietly, lowering her arm and staring at the fabric. There was a smudge of dirt on it--apparently it'd gotten dirty too, and understandably. Tilting her head back and sticking her chin out a bit, she looked up at Petra, waiting to hear if she'd done okay or not with it. "Did I-I clean it good?" she asked. She jumped a little at the sound of the dragon's yawn, but since he didn't seem to be doing anything else, she didn't try to run.

[petra]

Petra inspected the scrape and sighed. It wasn't as grimy, but it would require something besides being rubbed with a sleeve. She took her pack off, immediately finding what she needed, pulling out a square of linen. She poured some of her water-skin over it, leaving the cloth damp but not soaking wet. She held it out for Mouse to take.

"Use that instead of your sleeve," she said, not unkindly, "it might sting a little, but it'll get that cleaner."

When the girl jumped at Cyra's yawn, Petra was finally able to place the girl and how she knew her. Her name started with an "m"...

"You're Mouse. Anglerkin. I thought I recognized you. I'm Petra Aslaksen. Does your auntie still want you to be a dragon healer?"

[Mothy]

Mouse nodded as she meekly took the cloth, pressing it to her chin and wincing as she felt it sting. "Thank you..." she mumbled. Least this was just water, not actual medicine, which tended to hurt even worse. She shifted her eyes upward for a few moments, once again trying to place a name to the face. And found herself starting a little bit when the older woman spoke up.

"Y-You know me?" she squeaked a bit; then her eyes widened as she heard the other's name. "Petra!" Now that she looked again, she could sort of tell it was her now..."Your hair got longer...an' you got taller," she added lamely.

"Does your auntie still want you to be a dragon healer?"

"Er...I don't think so..." Mouse sighed, looking back at her feet as she shyly kicked the ground with one toe. Auntie hadn't brought that up in quite a while... "She st-stopped talking about the idea after I ran away from one...and landed on the medicines when I fell. And broke them." Mouse's face heated in embarrassment and she hunched her shoulders even further than usual, looking more turtle-like than ever. "I bet she's still thinking of it though...Says I gotta 'stop being silly.'" Of course, Mouse saw nothing "silly" about fear, but apparently her aunt did.

[petra]

Petra's grin grew wider as Mouse kept talking. It was obvious she was trying to suppress a laugh, but she managed it with aplomb.

"I've been looking for an apprentice. I can keep you out the worst of it, and I'm sure you'd make your auntie happy. I'm back for a little while at least, and maybe if you've learned enough by the time I leave again you can come with me to study dragons."

Behind her she heard a curious sort of hiccuping chuff; she turned her head to find Cyra laughing. She slapped his shoulder, sending up a puff of dust.

"Quit it, you great lump of guts. She'll do just fine." She looked back at mouse, putting a hand on her hip.

"What do you say? Room, board, free travel and a small stipend for the needs of daily life. Plus a monthly bonus."

[Mothy]

Voice trailing off into quiet mumbling, Mouse look up again in curiosity. An apprentice? Her aunt had been wanting her to find one, find something she could do when she was an adult. And they had been running out of options, so maybe...But then Mouse heard what she was to do, and her eyes widened. "D-Dr-dragons?" she squeaked, hugging herself suddenly. Nervously, she looked past the older woman, who seemed to be waiting for her response, risking a peek at the dragon behind her. She didn't like that noise it was making--whatever it meant.

"B-But they'll...what if I...?" she began, looking nervously at her hands. For a brief moment she imagined one of them being bitten off, and shuddered. She drew her hands close again, biting her lower lip as she thought it over. Auntie'll be mad if I say no...and for a 'stupid' reason... she thought sadly. Well, there really wasn't another choice, was there? She looked up again, daring to meet Petra's eyes. "They won't attack me...will they? A-And not that one?" she asked, glancing beyond again. "B-Because if you promise, then...I think maybe I c-could..."