Just one more chance?

Writers: Kaysea, Rochelle
Date Posted: 11th April 2007

Characters: Tatitem
Description: Tatitem awards punishments for Turoar and Badaral for not appearing to help Karri wash Elliath (and scares the trouble out of them - we hope)
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 2, day 7 of Turn 4

"What are you doing here?" Turoar asked, as he slouched down against the corridor wall outside the Headwoman's office. His wavy, dark blond hair was long, and fell into his mud brown eyes. His clothes were rumpled, as though he had been sleeping in them, and his hair looked as though tunnel snakes could be nesting within...

"Dunno." Badaral shrugged his shoulders. Almost a replica for the other boy, in every way, except his dark brown hair was straight and hung in two sheets on either side of his face. His blue eyes looked bruised from lack of sleep, and his cheeks still looked ruddy as though he had only woken a short time before. "I just got told I had to be here this morning.
You?"

"Haven't a clue." Turoar showed no particular interest either way, "Hey! I meant to tell you last night, sorry I didn't get there to help clean that dragon yesterday. What was it's name?" He looked up at Badaral.

Badaral's chin dropped and his face blanched white. "You... you didn't show up to clean the dragon, either?"

Sudden realization dawned across both boys faces at the same time - just as the Headwoman's door opened.

Tatitem glared at the two boys outside her office. Turoar and Badaral, continual thorns in her side. This was the fourth time she'd had to discipline them both for their actions -or rather, lack of them. She hadn't really expected them to show up this time, but had made arrangements anyway. And this time, they weren't going to be getting away.
The thought added a mildly sinister gleam to her eyes as she ordered coldly. "Come in, boys."

With more than a mild sense of trepidation Turoar pushed himself up from the corridor floor and followed a distinctly gray looking Badaral into the Headwoman's office. He wasn't game to look Tatitem in the eye, the sound of her voice was enough to give him a feeling of weakness in the bowel's.

Badaral shuffled forwards, his head down, he didn't raise his eyes to look at the Headwoman. A harrowing thought flashed through his mind, he would be returning to that sharding cothold he supposedly called home; he knew it with certainty. The brew he'd drunk last night was awash in his stomach, he could feel it rising like bile in his throat. **Just get it over and done with** his mind pleaded, anything just as long as he could make it to the necessary before throwing up.

Tatitem closed the door behind the boys, and went to stand behind her desk, not offering them a seat. She didn't want this to be comfortable for them. They had been reported to her far too many times for her to have any sympathy left, and only the fact they hadn't done anything serious while they were drunk prevented her from asking to have them sent home. Yet.

"I see I don't have to explain why you are here." She observed, noting Badaral's complexion. **Good.** "So I'll start with this. Your behavior is completely unacceptable. If this continues, I'll have no choice but to ask the Weyrwoman to send you back where you came from, Search or no Search."

"Oh shards! No, please Ma'am, not _that_." Turoar's head snapped up, his eyes wide with shock. The thought of returning to work on the smallholding really was enough to turn his guts to water. After all the boasting he had done before he left, he couldn't face going back.

Badaral wavered on his feet, the plea put forward by Turoar was mirrored in his own eyes. He shook his head slowly, he knew what was running through Turoar's mind, the same thing as he had on his own; they shared so many common experiences that both boys were loathe to return home, Impression or not, _he_ refused to return to the cothold.

"We'll do _anything_ Headwoman, _anything_!" Badaral almost prostrated himself across Tatitem's desk, "Just one more chance ma'am. Please?"

Tatitem blinked at their reaction, feeling smug although she didn't let it show. **Should have made that threat earlier...** "I'm not going to give you another lecture about responsibility since you obviously didn't listen to the last one." She said severely. "So instead, I've arranged for the pair of you to learn some discipline. For the next two sevendays, you will be doing double chores mucking out the dragon infirmary under Journeyman Adermil's supervision. And if I hear one word about either of you shirking or causing trouble, I'm going to recommend to the Weyrwoman that you be sent home. Understand?"

"Understood." Badaral gratefully jumped at the punishment, **how hard can it be?** he asked himself. Anything would be better than being sent home, in disgrace and not aboard the back of his own dragon-mate.

"Thank you, ma'am. I for one, appreciate your generosity." Turoar almost bowed to the Headwoman in relief. "We'll do our best, and no more shirking." He nodded his head emphatically. He really had no idea what he had been let in for; he was just so grateful that he wasn't being sent home immediately that he'd missed most of what Tatitem had said.

They had no idea what they were about to do, she could see it in their faces. **All the better then,** Tatitem decided. They needed something to shake reality into their heads. And Journeyman Adermil would see to it that they they were kept tightly in line. She was really tired of seeing them in her office. "I expect no less." She said firmly. "After classes you will report to the dragon infirmary, where Journeyman Adermil will show you what to do. You will do exactly what he says, no matter how disgusting or beneath you you may think it is. Since this is a double chore load there will be no more free time, and no more drinking.
Journeyman Adermil has no patience with drunks."

"Yes, ma'am." both boys said at once. They glanced at each other - a concerned look marred both faces. Tatitem's words were finally beginning to sink in, and it occurred to them just _what_ they had been assigned to do.

Last updated on the April 11th 2007

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