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I'm Looking For Something In Blue


Date:  October 31, 2002
Place:  Weaver Hall's Inner Courtyard
Game:  PernMUSH
Copyright Info:  The World of Pern is copyright(c) to Anne McCaffrey 
l967. The Dragonriders of Pern(r) is a registered copyright.

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Kassi's Note:  Kassima's personal crusade to equip her daughter with
everything an expectant mother could possibly need continues with this
trip to Weavercraft, and this time Kisai's along for the ride.  As per
usual, Katlynn attempts to get Kassi to buy something pink.  As per 
usual, she fails... pretty much.  Not quite as per usual, Kiss ends up
following in her parents' footsteps by promising to model for the 
Craft.  And somewhere in there some business even gets done.

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The Log:

You wander out into the inner courtyard.

Katlynn sits in a semi-quiet corner of the courtyard, legs crossed on the
bench beneath her, hands palm-up and flat against her knees. "Kassima.
Welcome to the Weavercraft Hall." She murmurs very, very softly, and cracks
open one eye to give the greenrider a ridiculously plain smile.

Two sets of footfalls herald new arrivals to the courtyard: the slower and
louder of these, courtesy of bootsoles, belong to Kassima. The smaller and
lighter are Kisai's, the small girl holding onto her mother's hand as the
greenrider walks from the Great Hall at a leisurely amble. "Ooh, Mum,
look!" the little girl exclaims on seeing the fountain, and is forestalled
from running in that direction only when Kassi tightens her hold. "I see
it, love. Mayhaps there'll be time t'look at it later, but we need t'be
finding a Weaver first... ah! And so we have!" Kiss cranes her head to peer
immediately in the direction of the soft voice as Kassi turns to greet,
"Craftmaster Katlynn, good t'be seeing you again. Duties and the like too,
a'course. Are we interrupting you at something?"

Katlynn remains in her cross-legged palm-upped position, cracking the other
eye open at the sound of a child's voice. She shakes her head then, very
slowly. "You're not interrupting a single thing. I'm just.. relaxing."
She's doing something, that's for sure. Just around the corner, half-hidden
behind a group of palms, sit three journeyman of similar age to the
Craftmaster herself, all looking up at her with worshipful expressions.
"Come join me? And I take it this one is.. one of the many of your
offspring? There are sweetrolls in the Hall she might like." And her
fingers snap, twice, quickly, and one of the journeymen is up on his feet,
apparently running into the hall to fetch said sweetrolls.

Kassima leads her daughter towards the relaxed Craftmaster. The
six-Turn-old's attentions seem split between this curious, fine-clad woman
and her unusual surroundings, and her eyes are very wide as they flick from
one to the other. "You certes look relaxed," Kassima agrees, peering around
Katlynn towards those worshipful young men. "Have you considered asking 'em
t'feed you grapes...? We'll join you gladly. C'mon, love." The greenrider
sinks to a cross-legged position with ease, though Kiss flops herself down
with considerably less elegance. "Sweetrolls?" she pipes up hopefully,
*all* her focus on the Craftmaster once that magic word is said. "You don't
guess wrongly," her mother says, tendering the girl a wry, fond glance.
"This is m'youngest, Kisai, and she a'course thanks you *most kindly* for
the sweetrolls. She decided she'd like t'come help me with m'business, y'see."

The man with the sweetrolls returns before Katlynn has time to form a
reply. She snaps her fingers once, twice, and the over-laden tray is placed
down in front of the little miss with a low bow. Kat turns to grin at
Kassima and Kisai, wiggling herself all around to shake out of the relaxed
pose. "I'm training them to worship me for the rest of their days. I hadn't
thought of grapes though.. I'll have to keep that in mind for their next
lesson." Finger snap again, and the three men scurry off, leaving the women
alone to do business. "I assume you've returned on the matter of the thing
you wouldn't write down?"

"You should also teach them t'fan you with wide fronds and braid flowers
into your hair." It's hard to tell whether Kassima's being serious or not.
Her *expression* is perfectly sincere, but that gleam in her eyes.... "I
still hope t'buy an island after the Pass and retire there, with a score of
bronzeriders t'do such things for me." Kisai's clearly delighted by the
arrival of the sweetrolls, her turquoise eyes brightening considerable. She
picks up one and sets to munching with enthusiasm, leaving her mother
murmuring about teaching manners with no real heat behind it. "Forgive
m'spawn, Craftmaster, if'n 'twill. She's never been to the Hall a'fore and
methinks the surroundings are exciting her. You've most kindly hit it, with
regards to the business--I'm sorry I didn't get back sooner. And sorry I
couldn't broach the matter just then. The subject's a bit... delicate."

"With fronds.. and flowers.. You have some of *the* best ideas, Kassima. If
you ever get to be buying that island full of bronzerider's, make sure to
send me and invite to visit. I'll even bring my own bronzerider.. if I can
manage to capture one by then." Katlynn, for her own part, is *perfectly*
serious, not even a hint of mischeif in her expression. She grins down at
Kisai, and grabs a sweetroll for herself, setting into eating it with no
less enthusiasm than the little. After a moment, "That's quite alright."
Pause, "Now I know it's not pink underthings.. so what *is* it?"

Kassima makes a moue of modesty that might be more effective if she didn't
now look so amused. "So long as you bring a bronzer, I suppose an
invitation might be possible. Perhaps 'twill make that a condition of all
would-be visitors: you have t'bring your own bronzerider." She's trying to
deadpan this, but the grin she wears while she says it doesn't help her
effort. "*Certes* 'tisn't pink underthings. Certes nay. 'Tis actually a
number of things. One's a blouse for the youngling here, mayhaps with a
skirt, mayhaps with some pants, I'm open to negotiation--" Kisai seems less
than thrilled by this proposal, and crinkles her nose a little over her
second sweetroll. "But that's a sideline. I'm here specifically for...
well, a few things. A maternity tunic or two. Nice ones. Mayhaps some baby
clothes if'n there are any on hand. And definitely a stuffed dragon."

Katlynn *might* like the idea of a bronzerider island, but the word
'maternity' stop her from saying anything futher on the subject. "Maternity
and baby clothes? Kassima.. are you.. you're not, are you?" She eyes the
greenrider carefully, up-and-down, up-and-down, then scrunches her nose.
"If you are, you haven't put on a scrap of weight. How many will this make
it?" She shifts attention then to the child, putting on a smiley face and
sing-song voice, though the child is likely a little too old to be amused
by it, "Are you going to have a baby brother or sister? You lucky thing."

Indeed, Kisai gives Katlynn a look that's less amused than bemused--but
she's too clever a child to say anything rude to She Who Gives Sweetrolls.
So instead she swallows the bite she was chewing and announces clearly,
"Nay a brother or sister, a *niece*! Or a... a... um. A boy niece." Kassi's
expression as her darling daughter declares this with no discretion
whatsoever is not precisely pleased. More carefully blank. "'Tisn't me,"
she settles for agreeing, the tone a bit flat. "Kiss is likely the youngest
I'll have. 'Tis for someone else. Are there things of that nature on hand
here? Or I could be commissioning something, but given the limited use
'twouldn't be m'first choice."

"A niece." Katlynn repeats, blinking at Kisai with an odd sort of look on
her face. "A boy niece. You mean you're going to be an Auntie?" She
scrunches her nose up, not sure whether to believe the little girl or not.
Instead, she shifts her gaze to Kassima, tilting her head to one side and
watching her carefully. "Sure we have lots of maternity outfits just
off-the-rack. Baby things too, though a lot of people like to order
something *one of a kind* for a new babe. Of course, that sort of thing
costs just a *smidgen* bit more, so it really depends on how many marks
you're wanting to part with." Peering oddly at Kassima still, "So who's
baby is it?"

Kiss nods emphatically to that, a strand of dark hair falling into her eyes
with the motion. "I am. I think that should make me a grown-up, don't you?
But Mum says nay, and she says I shouldn't ask Papa yet; I bet *he'll*
agree--" Kassima finds this a politic time to press a sweetroll into the
girl's small hands. "Marks aren't a great object. I might be interested in
ordering such a thing, if'n 'twere large enough that it might be *worn* a
bit; y'know how the new ones grow. Whose? Whose. Someone I know." Yeah,
that's one way of putting it. Kisai's a bit more obliging, even around her
sweetroll: "Kay's! She's m'biggest sister, and Mum says she's going t'be
*really* big now and that's why she needs new clothes."

Katlynn grins down at the little blabbermouth, bobbing her head in
agreement. "Oh yes, *definetly* grown up. You'll be a real little lady,
Kisai." There's a pause then, as she listens to Kassima, but since Kisai is
the one telling all, she focuses her attenion on her for the most part.
"Ohh... so it's your *sister* whose to be having a babe, is it now? Well
then," Grinning, she lets her gaze slide over to Kassima, "Congratulations!
Are you excited? Y'know, the best thing about children's children, is that
you can coo at them, play with them, and *hand them back*."

This causes a concerned expression to cross Kisai's face. She wrinkles her
freckled nose again. "That doesn't mean I have to wear big poofy dresses
and get married, does it? I don't want to get married. *Or* wear anything
poofy. Ever." Quite firm on this point, is Kiss. "'Tis! Well, one of 'em. I
have *lots* of sisters and they aren't *all* having babies, which is good
'cause," and here she drops her voice to confide to Katlynn in a child's
ineffective whisper, "if'n they were Mum might make me get a shirt for
every one." Kassi's been maintaining that neutral facade all through this
exchange, but she actually has to bite her lip at the latter. "Horror of
horrors," she drawls. "Thankee, Craftmaster. I'm... certes happy for
Kaylira. She's apparently been wanting a child."

Katlynn gives the youngster another looking over at the wrinkled nose. "We
wouldn't want such esteemed clientel as you to be anything less than happy
with their clothes, so poofy dresses are quite out of the question." She
casts a look over mother and daughter with a well-trained eye. "Perhaps we
could have something made up that would meet with your approval then.
Something to match your mother, who's taste is impecable." No reason that
Kat can't drum her Hall up some more business while the maternity clothes
are comissioned. She can try at least.

Kisai may look skeptical, but she chooses to take up nibbling again at her
latest sweetroll. Which leaves Kassi to comment, "I don't know what of mine
'twould really suit Kiss t'be matching. She'd be all right in a copy of the
usual," and she gestures to herself to indicate her simple
slacks-and-blouse ensemble, "but 'twas hoping for something a wee bit less
for common wear. Though nay *terribly* dressy. I'm surprised t'hear you say
m'tastes are impeccable given that I still won't wear the pink, by the by."
That, at least, is good-humored tease; she then says, "So you're thinking
we can be doing business? I don't want t'be getting a ton of aught--Kay
might want t'choose some of the clothes and such herself, and I'd nay deny
her that, but I wanted t'make sure she'd have some *new* things. Since 'tis
her first and all. And I can't imagine the kidlet nay having a stuffed
dragon."

Katlynn considers this for a moment, frowning over the mention of the pink,
which she went to /so/ much trouble over. Having given it enough though she
smiles at the two "Nothing of that will be any problem for us at all, in
fact I shall ensure that the stuffed dragon is provided with the
compliments of the hall." A certain gleam has appeared in the Craftmaster's
eyes, a warning that perhaps the stuffed toy in question will indeed have
many fuschia overtones. "And we shall let the apprentices be inspired over
the child shall we? They certainly could do with using their imaginations,
she'd make the perfect model for the newly refurbished design class if
you'd let her. I'd even take a mark or two off the commission price, as my
thanks to you." She smiles ever so sweetly. "As for garments for Kaylira,
you can either choose from what we have on hand - and I have to say, some
of it is *lovely* - or I'll see about getting someone to make a few things
for you?"

Delighted surprise starts to dawn over Kassi's expression, but its progress
is arrested by The Gleam. "'Twas wanting blue, brown, or green," she
half-notes, half-warns. "I'd be all right with any of those; bronze or gold
would be bad since Faranth only knows what the gender will be, and any
other color wouldn't suit." Like, say, pink. "As t'Kiss's outfit, I'd say
that sounds like a fair deal--so long as 'twill be of a color she likes and
might actually wear. She doesn't care for pink." Kisai makes a full out
face as she shakes her head. Evidently Mom's not lying just to avoid a pink
laced child. "What would I have to do, to model?" Kiss wants to know,
interest drawn from the sweetroll. "Mum says that Papa had to wear
something that embarrassed him, and I don't think I'd want to do that,
please." Kassi reaches to give her daughter's hair a reassuring ruffle as
she replies, "I'd like t'be seeing what's on hand first--if'n none of it
looks as if'n 'twould suit her, color-wise and such, mayhaps then 'twill
need t'be commissioning."

Katlynn sighs ever so sadly, "Are you *sure* the new baby wouldn't be a
pink child, who would be *delighted* to recieve such a toy?" There's hope
for pink yet, "Tell you what, I'll make a green stuffed dragon, and throw
in the pink one for free. Or even a pink porcine for free. A spotty one
too. Purple spots." Turning then to regard the youngling, "And why don't
*you* like pink, little miss? It's such a lovely colour. Suits anyone you
know.." whispered, "Even your father. If there was one man who could ever
make pink look good, it would be him." She straightens then, and gives
something of a shrug. "Not much involved in it at all. She'd just have to
sit or stand up the front looking pretty, maybe do a little twirl every so
often, to inspire the apprentices in making children's clothing."

"This child *will* be of m'bloodline. I feel safe in saying 'twill nay be a
child who'd adore pink." And now it's Kassi's turn to be firm. Still, the
magic word 'free' makes her waver. "I don't suppose 'twould be harm in
another dragon... without spots, if'n you please... if'n you truly want
t'be making one." Kisai gives her mother a disgusted look. Man, say the
word 'free' and she'll agree to anything. "Pink looks bil... bili...
*bilious*. That's it," the child informs Kat, with some triumph for getting
the word. "Mum says so, and I've seen her lace outfit and it looks *really*
silly, I don't know why she has it. The only girls I know who like pink are
silly. They play games like Family where they just marry some boy and
pretend to have babies and that's *boring*--*Papa*? Papa wears pink?"
Imagine Is's reaction to Kiss asking him about this one later. At the
clarification, Kassi looks down at Kiss, letting the girl decide; Kisai
chews her lip for a minute. "That'd be okay. I could do that. They wouldn't
make fun of me?"

Katlynn shrugs, "Well, even if it doesn't like pink, it'll have something
pink *just in case*. Better to be safe than sorry, y'know." With a
wrinkled-up nose then, she peers at Kisai, and after a moment, she looks
simply horrified. "Girls who wear pink don't *all* play house and silly
games like that. /I/ certainly didn't. Harumph." She stands then, brushing
off her skirts. A grin then, springs to her lips, and she looks back over
her shoulder at mother and daughter pair. "Yes, your father wear pink.
Y'should ask him to show you his frilly, belled pink things sometime.
They're a true delight for the senses." With a glance across the room, she
nods quickly to the rather timid apprentice who's drawn the short straw and
been sent to remind the craftmaster that she was to address the apprentices
regarding the most recent series of pranks about the hall. "If you excuse
me then?" she asks as she turns and flounces across and disappears with the
apprentice.

Katlynn strolls into the building, towards the great hall.

Kisai bites her lip again, looking momentarily worried until her mother
gives her a one-armed hug. "Never be minding that, love," Kassi suggests
with a soft laugh. "She likes pink, but that doesn't mean you have to, and
I'm sure she's knowing you didn't mean t'offend." Getting to her feet, she
tugs Kiss up with her and heads for the exit, Kiss grabbing one last
sweetroll for the road; the last thing heard from the pair on their way out
is Kisai's piped, "Mum, does Papa *really* wear frilly pink things with
bells?"

You stride into the great hall.