Furry new Friend

[cevara]

Cevara was freezing.

It couldn't have been more than three hours past dawn but she felt as though she'd been awake for many marks. The brown rider was used to long hours. What she wasn't used to was long cross country walks. For most such journeys the brown rider, really like any other rider, used Gaveneth for transport. If this had been any proper sort of morning she'd have done just that. However, this morning had gone just a little bit differently.

For the past couple sevendays, Cevara had been making good on a comment that had passed almost in jest between herself and the Weyrwoman. Every morning just before dawn she had been going out to the forest and utilizing her considerable skill with a bow to hunt. Specifically she had been hunting the wild porcines that frequented the nearby forest. Apparently Turns beyond measure ago, a group of porcines had escaped Kajano Hold and had flourished in the wilderness. With the shortage of supplies recently, the weaponsmaster had taken it upon herself to bring in as many of these to the Weyr as possible. She realized she certainly couldn't feed a Weyr this way, but she figured every little bit helped, and using hunting skills was probably more productive than attempting to steal supplies directly from Hold stock.

Not that the idea wasn't an intriguing one. Most poor ideas are.

She had been lucky recently, and had brought in a total of seven hefty porcines to the Weyr transported in, of course, by Gaveneth. Okay technically she had killed eight, but in a moment of weakness the brown had wolfed one down for a morning snack. We can't all be perfect.

This morning had gone very differently, and her 'quarry' could hardly be more different from a porcine if it was necessary. Cradled in Cev's well-sculpted arms one would see two tiny ears flopped and peeking out from out of a dirty, bundled shirt.

This brings us back to why the weaponsmaster was so cold.

While on the trail of the porcine herd, Cev had observed a terrible, heart-wrenching screeching. Afraid there was an injured child in the wood, she had rushed to the source of the noise to discover it was not a person, but instead a tiny rabbit caught in a snare. Apparently she was not the only one out hunting. The poor creature's left rear leg was wrenched in a horribly unnatural direction and it was obviously exhausted from it's struggle. Only and individual with the hardest of hearts wouldn't have helped it, and anyone who knew Cevara knew she had a very big and very soft heart. The cute flopped ears helped as well.

So she had done the only thing she could do. In the cold, damp morning air she had removed her heavy overtunic. Wrapped the poor creature in it, and trekked all the way from the forest, two the 'bowl, and finally to the healer's weyr in nothing but a hide underbodice. I am never going out without a spare shirt again. I still do not understand why you did not just ride me home. Is /it/ that important to you? Cev grinned at the brown's irritated tone. Not jealous are you? And yes it was necessary. She was terrified as it was. The last thing I needed after all this was for her heart to stop upon being faced with a big brute dragon like yourself. I am not a brute! The indignant voice rang through her mind. And I am not jealous. It just seems far too much fuss for such a little.....puff. Perhaps you're right. But I just had to give her a chance. She better make it after this, poor thing.

Cev had not bothered notifying anyone she was coming. After all, it was just a little rabbit. Nothing important...not to anyone else anyway. She didn't care who was here to tend it, Tsunade, K'ivan, anyone really. She just hoped they had the time for this special case.

Given all the abovementioned circumstances, the brown rider was quite a sight for whatever poor soul was here to see her. Apart from being half-naked on top, her wavey blonde hair stuck out everywhere from her runners tail, and her largely exposed arms and chest were covered in gooseflesh and a multitude of scratches. This paired with a recurve bow and quiver strung to her back made her a very odd sight indeed.

Not seeing anyone in the weyr at first blurry, exhausted glance she called out, "Hello, can anyone help me with this?"

From inside the bundled shirt, the floppy ears twitched weakly.

[K'ivan]

As it turned out K'ivan was working on the finishing touching to a new batch of hide oil. So the place stank. He'd warned everyone who regularly came to the caverns what he intended to do and suggested they find somewhere else to be during the day. The 'aroma' wafted out into the corridor and made it in a fainter version of itself into the Weyrbowl. Fortunately it was impossible to tell where the stench emmenanted from or no doubt several members of the Weyr would have words with the Dragonhealer. Fortunately once the stick brew cooled the smell would dissipate. Unfortunately, for now as Cevara and her new companion walked into the healers' cavern, the brown rider could nto help but be over-whelmed with the horrendous bog-stench of the brewing oil.

K'ivan stood with his back to the door, wiping down the counter. Small jars filled to the brim with the oil were lined up in front of him. This batch was cooling. He had a head scraf wrapped around his mouth and nose, his eyes watered from being exposed to the smell so long. When he heard Cevara's bootsteps he paused, frowning as he attempted to figure out whose they were. Familiar to him as they were, he had too many good friends in the Weyr to decide right away who they were. However, her voice clenched the decision. Cevara.

He pivoted and smiled at her, of course the scarf prevented her from seeing the smile around his lips but his dark eyes gleamed as his gaze fell upon her. Then her condition registered - the fluttering strands of hair, the bow, the lack of clothing, the unusual lump she cradled to her chest... and he furrowed his brow. "What... what's happened? Wha..." The floppy ears chose to twitch again.

"Cevara, what's going on?" He went to her and tilted his head down as he sought to examine her precious burden, hands already reaching toward her to open the bundle she carried.

[cevara]

Cevara certainly had noticed the odd smell filtering through the Weyr. It had hit her when she'd entered the Weyrbowl. Under the circumstances, however, she was too preoccupied to wonder heavily at its source. It wasn't from something that was wrong, or someone would have notified her. Therefore whatever it was it was fine, even in all it's stinky glory.

It became evident the source of the stench was indeed her destination, and Cevara was now aware fatigue alone hadn't been blurring her vision, but the powerful oder of...what /was/ that? Regardless, she was very relieved to see her weyrmate was indeed here, though with the scarf and the reek and the questionable little bottles...

"I might ask you the same thing." She answered with a befuddled expression glancing from K'ivan to the counter and back to him again. "Anyway, no time right now. Do you think you can help her?"

Cevara briskly closed the distance between them, meeting him halfway while scooching the bundle higher on her chest so that its contents may be more visible. As K'ivan reached toward the bundle, she protectively drew it closer to herself and instinctively took half a step back. "Careful, she's very frightened."

Hunching over it, she grasped part of the tunic with her teeth and pulled back, revealing the tiny head that the floppy ears belonged to. The little rabbit's eyes were dull with pain and she was obviously shaking even more than the human carrying her.

"I found her in a snare. Her leg is broken really badly...I-I couldn't just leave her there." There was a helpless edge to her voice. Biting nervously on her lower lip, she looked up at her weyrmate with pleading eyes.

[Tsunade]

Tsunade was about; she'd just vacated her usual place in the Infirmary in favour of working out in the somewhat fresher air out in the Weyrbowl. It wasn't a big fuss for her, after a few well-placed but playful grumblings about dragonhealers and their sharding smells, and she'd had people to see to anyway.

As it was, she'd picked a fine time to return with her completed work. K'ivan clearly hadn't finished brewing his oil, and Tsunade's groan was eloquent as she stepped into the Infirmary, knowing the smell would cling for a good few days.

Placing her reports on a bench, she paused to lift her scarf from her neck and tie it around her nose and mouth, looking rather comical as she did so. Looking around as she cleared a few things here and there, she frowned at the sound of voices. Raising an eyebrow, she located them towards the back of the Infirmary, and upon ascertaining to herself just what it was, disappeared for several moments before re-appearing just as Cevara turned pleading eyes to the bronze rider.

"Here," she said quietly, voice muffled by the scarf as she placed what K'ivan might need on the table next to him - numbweed, stitching, a small but warm piece of fur, splinting and bandages, giving him one of her lopsided little smiles behind the scarf before glancing with uncharacteristically gentle sympathy down at the frightened little rabbit.

She wasn't a beasthealer, by any stretch of the imagination, but she'd lived her life long enough in a Weyr - her whole life, in fact, and spent enough time around beasthealers in the past to have a genuine fondness for animals. Especially something so small and adorable as the little creature in Cevara's arms, and the Healer sighed softly as she observed the glazed, frightened beady eyes, the way the little ears twitched with every erratic breath from the little body. In truth, the practical side in her told her that the rabbit probably wouldn't survive much longer, with such an ordeal as what she'd clearly been through before Cevara had found, but if anything, it was worth a try, wasn't it? If only to rest a little the entreaty in the female brown rider's gaze.

"Call me if you need anything else," Tsunade said quietly to K'ivan, though her faint smile was for Cevara before she left the little kit she'd sat next to K'ivan with them, resuming her usual activities around the Infirmary, though considerably quieter than usual.

[K'ivan]

"Hide oil." K'ivan offered by way of explanation for the stench in the room. His voice was muffled by his head scarf. His dark eyes widened as he saw the floppy ears of the rabbit. They were not common on the Western Continent and definitely not this far into the mountains. He'd be curious to know where the snare was that Cevara found it, as it could be a potential food source. Considering the state of affairs, the rabbit was looking better as dinner than a new friend for Cevara. He'd discuss his idea with her later, and attend to the one she had in her arms now. Clearly she was distressed. If they had rabbit for dinner at all, it would not be this rabbit.

K'ivan frowned down at the rabbit. He furrowed his brow and looked at the mammal, translating his knowledge of fire-lizards to this creature prior to speaking to his weyrmate about her discovery. A Beastcrafter would be more useful right now than he; however he was more qualified to deal with a non-human than Tsunade. And as though his thoughts summoned his counterpart, the Healer appeared with the supplies K'ivan needed to use on the rabbit.

"Good timing, thank you for these." He gestured to the equipment and such. Nodding, he added: "I will send Aridron of we need anything else." With the training he'd been doing with the fire-lizard would be an excellent way of getting Tsunade's attention, if needed. He was only disappointed that Zhaymarius wasn't here to watch and help him work on the rabbit.

"Here, put her on the table..." K'ivan gestured to fur Tsunade supplied. "It will insulate her from the cold in the room. Hold her head and uninjured back leg, so I can get a better look at the broken one. If the break's not too bad, we should be able to splint it." As he spoke, he unscrewed the top of the numbweed jar and slid his fingers through it. "She's bad but I won't know how bad till I look at her better." As with Tsunade's assessment, K'ivan was concerned the rabbit would not live, no matter how well she was cared for. While he was no expert on the rabbits, he remembered reading they were notoriously fragile creatures and easily succumbed to shocks to their system.