--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Berry, Berry, Quite Contrary


Date:  September 15, 2003
Place:  Telgar Weyr Lake Shore
Game:  PernMUSH
Copyright Info:  The World of Pern is copyright(c) to Anne McCaffrey 
l967. The Dragonriders of Pern(r) is a registered copyright.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kassi's Note:  Trust T'van not to be content with just a kiss.  Kassi's 
fulfilled her joking agreement with him, to give him a kiss in thanks 
for his good treatment of Yselle while the younger greenrider was 
proddy; however, rather than getting him off her back, this only seems
to have given the lecherous bluerider Ideas.  Fortunately for Kassi (if
not so much for T'van), Kisai is there to protect her mother's honor 
and ask the pertinent question about how many toys this new suitor has 
in the attic. ;)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Log:

There's a remarkably familial scene going on by the Lake at this hour:
Kassi's sitting on her favorite boulder, gloved hands wrapped around a mug
of something that steams liberally and smells like a rather spicy soup; her
position's ideal for overseeing the last touches put on a large if
not-so-well-constructed snow dragon. "I still think that left wing is the
best part," she calls over to the nine-Turn-old girl who's at work on it,
hands encased in mittens and the rest of her bundled up in a black leather
riding jacket, scarf, and knit cap.

What's this? T'van has a new outfit. He's dressed all in deep blue, a tone
that shows off the red highlights in his hair. He's sauntering down to the
lake with an enormous bunch of flowers. Never let it be said that the
bluerider has no taste; he's arranged them perfectly, and is making a few
more adjustments as he heads in, humming cheerfully to himself. He pauses
dramatically as he comes in sight of Kassima, which, given the light, or
lack thereof, is a little closer than it might be in daytime. "There she
is!" he says, pressing a hand to his heart. "Oooooooh loooooooovely one!"
he calls over.

Kassima turns about sloooowly on her rock to, for a moment, give T'van a
look of first startlement, then disbelief... and, finally, a cross between
amusement and something like horror. "Kisai!" she turns back to call to the
girl, who straightens, surprised. "Methinks T'van's here looking for you!"
Little wonder Kiss looks so wary as she abandons her snow creation to pick
through the snow to where her mother sits, the better to look completely
baffled by this notion.

Magnanimously, T'van bends down, and with a great deal of seriousness,
offers Kisai a flower. "Aren't you lovely?" he says. "Almost as lovely as
your mother. Don't you think she's pretty?" He then dances over to her
mother and notes "She's a little young for me. Maybe in a few years. How
are you this lovely evening... besides being more beautiful than ever?" The
rest of the flowers he presents with a flourish. "Happy turnday, Kassie."

Kisai is no less confused than before, but she accepts the flower
nevertheless, careful in gripping the stem so that it won't slip from her
snow-dusted mitten. "Mum always says so," she reports, glancing back to her
mother with eyes the exact color of I'sai's. Little doubt where those
freckles come from, either, though the black hair and tilt to her eyes are
doubtless courtesy of the maternal line. "And Mum's prettier than everyone.
Except maybe Foster-Mum. She might be about as pretty. Um... thank you,"
she adds belatedly for the flower. Kassi's more amused than ever at her
daughter's endorsement, but that doesn't prevent her from observing--if
with a grin--"If'n you ever even think of flirting with her, a few Turns
down the road or ever, T'van... I'm well, though, quite well. Haven't
thrown up once today! Thankee--" She accepts the flowers, smiling down at
them for the beauty they have regardless of who gave them; but, "But who
told you 'twas m'Turnday? I'm afraid 'tis naught of the sort."

Batting his big blue eyes at her, T'van says "Now Kassie-love, how could
anyone even /look/ at another when you are around? Besides, she makes me
feel," he grins and says "Paternal. Now, about that turnday... it's not
today?" he affects a shocked look. "I'll have to bring you flowers every
day until it /is/ your turnday."

"Mum, is he crazy?" Kisai leans in to whisper to her mother, though between
her mother's ear being rather above her head and her childish lack of
perfect vocal control, the whisper's almost certainly audible.
"Indubitably, m'love," the greenrider murmurs in answer. "But at least he's
crazy with flowers." Kisai gives an uncertain nod, and brushes the end of
her other hand gently against a flower-petal. "Where did you get these,
anyway, T'van? Couldn't be here at this time of Turn. But nay, nay today."
She pauses. And, after the pause, gives him a wry look. "T'van, you do
realize that nay matter how many flowers you bring me, I'm *still* never
sleeping with you. Right?"

"Nowhere would be too far to go to get flowers for someone as lovely as
you," T'van intones. He gasps, looking shocked. "Why Kassie love, why would
I even /think/ such a thing? Surely you know how deeply I respect you, as
well as you know admiring your splendid beauty and all," he winks at Kisai
and says "I'm not crazy at all, unless you count crazy about your mother."

"I know you respect me deeply enough t'be trying t'figure out what sort of
bargain would get you into m'bed." Kassi could not be any drier if she
tried. "I've been speaking with Yselle." Kisai blinks at the wink, and
pipes up, "You aren't the real father of the baby, are you? He isn't, is
he, Mum? You're *sure* 'tis Papa's?" Kassi crinkles her nose at the girl.
"Aye, love. Absolutely positive."

"You know," T'van tells the little girl "I think your mother's just
wonderful. I'd love to be the real father, but alas, she's far too good for
me." He looks pained, and noble and all sorts of things not usually
associated with T'van. "Your father's a very lucky man."

In an undertone, T'van adds "Quite sexy too."

Let it not be said Kisai's not learned *some* manners: she doesn't say a
word in agreement of the 'too good for me' part, though from how she bites
her lip it's clear she's hard-put to refrain from comment. "T'van will
never father any more siblings for you," Kassima promises, giving a lock of
her daughter's hair that's managed to escape from under the cap an
affectionate tug. Kiss bats halfheartedly at her mother's hand. "He is!"
the girl agrees, bobbing her head. "He's got me!" Someone does not have an
ego problem.

T'van grins. For all his faults he's /good/ with kids. "Exactly," he agrees
with an easy grin. "Now, Kisai, tell me, what's your mother's favourite
colour? Wow. Did you make that snow dragon?" He grins and says "I love snow
dragons. Is it Lysseth or Taralyth?"

Kisai's expression shades towards bewildered again. "Green, a'course," she
answers promptly--polite rather than rude, but clearly bemused that this
isn't obvious. Kassi hides a grin. "I did. Mum helped some," Kiss admits,
without much loss of pride, "and Kaswyn sort of patted at the tail before
he had to go to bed, but I did most of it. 'Tisn't Lyss or Tear. 'Tis *my*
blue dragon. I'm calling him Rihueth today, for Uncle R'huen, but he's
really not much like Uncle R'huen."

T'van grins charmingly, and pays most of his attention to the girl now,
only now and again looking back to see if Kassima is noticing what a good
boy he's being. "Blues are /wonderful/ dragons," he says. "You should meet
Faenth. He'd like you. So would Gawanth. Why are you calling him after your
uncle?"

The fact that Kassi's watching rather than intervening, and with a grin,
suggests she's probably noticed--even if it hasn't made her all swoony for
him. "Methinks I'd like to ride a blue," Kisai confides, toying with her
flower. "Or a gold, I'm not sure. If I rode a gold I'd probably be
*famous*. But if I rode a blue he'd be really fast and we could go places
'cause there wouldn't be Thread, by then. So I don't know. I'm pretending
that he's quiet, and thoughtful, and that's like Uncle R'huen--" She casts
the snow dragon a fond look. "I wouldn't mind if he were sort of brash and
clever like Aunt Ylysse, but Ylysseth's a girly name. And Lysseth might not
like it."

T'van grins cheekily, winking at Kassima for her glance. "Well you /could/
ride a gold," he says thoughtfully. "But if you did there'd be losts of
hidework, and boring stuff. Blues are fast and clever and fun, and they
nearly always catch the greens, although.." darkly "sometimes that's the
bronzes as well. The browns apparently don't get a mention.

Kisai protests, "I wouldn't mind hidework!" She falls silent a moment to
think about this. "Well... not *some* hidework. I'd get to keep all the
Records, too, and see all the stories in there, and I'd really like that.
Does--Faenth? Was that it? Does he catch many greens?"

"Take my advice," T'van says sagely, although that can't be a good thing.
"Steal the hides and read the stories. Impress a blue. Faenth catches
sometimes, but even when he doesn't, we make do," grin. "You know, I bet he
could catch Lysseth."

"Oh, I'll do that too," Kisai blithely agrees. Her mother's having to duck
her head to hide her laughter at this point. "But see, I could *write* new
Records too. So people would be reading stuff of mine after I was dead.
That would be pretty neat. And I don't know if I'd want to have to worry
about flights so much." Given that she's nine, this is probably to be
expected. "Catch *Lyss*?" Kisai's silent another moment. "He's probably
pretty fast and smart," she says, trying for diplomacy, "but I don't think
he could beat Tear. Tear's the best male anywhere. Just ask Papa."

T'van blows a raspberry, crouching down to pat at the snow dragon, adding
some length to the tail. "He can outfly any bronze any day," except, as
events have proven, Indrath, and probably a lot of other bronzes on a lot
of other occasions. "Of course your father thinks he's the best, but /I/
think Faenth is."

Kisai watches this work with a critical eye, but it must meet with her
approval since she doesn't stoop to stop him. "I bet he couldn't outfly
Tear. Not for Lyss. But *you're* allowed to think he's best, definitely,
like Mum thinks Lysseth's best and Papa thinks Taralyth and I like them both."

T'van grins up at her and says "Deal. You know, if we made his wings a
little bigger he could catch more wind. He'd fly faster, then /he/ might
catch a green." Leaning closer, he hisses "Does your mother still want
mushrooms?"

"You don't think it'd make 'em fall off? I tried to make 'em stretch out
more," Kisai explains, gesturing to the nearest wing with a slightly
abashed face, "but they kept falling apart, so that's why I put 'em up
against his sides like that. They do look kind of short. My real dragon
would have big, long wings--" She stretches her arms out to illustrate. "So
he could be quick! But I wouldn't care if he ever caught any greens. I'd
maybe rather he didn't. That would be icky." On her boulder, Kassi looks
decidedly relieved at this opinion. Kisai blinks down at the bluerider when
he hisses; she stoops a bit to answer, still in that too-carrying whisper,
"She always likes mushrooms. She tries to make *me* eat them sometimes.
Yuck. But when we had dinner she didn't have any, she had lots of berries
instead."

"Berries," T'van says thoughtfully. "Well I'll tell you what," in a louder
tone. "Faenth can catch all the greens and he won't have to. How's that?"
Softer "What kind of berries?"

"Just leave some for Tear so he won't be sad or grumpy," Kiss advises. "But
he can have all the others, sure." After darting a quick, furtive glance up
at her mother--who's pretending not to be eavesdropping, the better to let
her little girl enjoy the thrill of being a conspirator--she crouches in
the snow, the better to keep her voice low. "All kinds. Blueberries and
strawberries and raspberries, and she dipped 'em in blackberry jam, and
asked the kitchen if there was any berry punch, only there wasn't. Then she
had some cheese-noodles and she mixed that in with the berries too. It was
dis*gus*ting."

T'van grins and gives Kisai the thumbs-up. "Right. Berries. I know this
field in Fort that grows the best... I wonder if Ys would come with me." He
grins and says "Oh Taralyth can have all the golds. Maybe your father will
become weyrleader."

Kisai makes a face at this prospect. "I don't *want* Papa to be Weyrleader.
Then he'd never have time to play. Tear shouldn't catch golds--last time he
did, Papa was at High Reaches forever and ever and I missed him and it
*sucked*." That sound from Kassi is definitely a laugh, muffled or not. "So
Tear should definitely have some greens. Definitely. Could I have some
berries too? Blueberries? I like blueberries."

T'van beams. "Blueberries it is," he says. "And..." he grins. "I'll have a
think about your dragon's wing." He straightens and says, oh so innocently,
as though he'd not be conspiring at all "Time to go. Did I mention you look
radiant Kassima?" And off he saunters, grinning.

"Mmm-hmm. Radiant. Right. You're an evil man t'be bringing my own children
into your schemes, T'van!" Kassi calls after the departing man, making a
show of shaking her fist--something that causes Kiss to cover her mouth
with her free hand and giggle helplessly.

T'van waves cheerily and calls back over his shoulder "All's fair in love,
Kassie dear, and I do love you to distraction."

Kassima shakes her head and responds with a simple, "Oh, please! *Spare*
me!" She's grinning with amusement at the situation, however, and
delicately extricates two flowers from the bunch she holds: one to place
behind her own ear, and one to place behind her daughter's.