Another Shelf, Another Stepladder

Writers: AL, Kurt
Date Posted: 3rd October 2008

Characters: Quilya, Lirit, Pirnae
Description: Quilya goes to the Records Room to study and encounters Lirit.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 12, day 3 of Turn 4
Notes: Mentor approved. Part 2 of 2 (split for length).

Following a hasty evening meal in the dining caverns, Quilya made her way
up to the records room. She entered the chamber and made her way to stand
in front of the desk where the attendant on duty was sitting. Quilya
recognized her. Pirnae was a nondescript middle aged woman with grey
hair. She looked up when the apprentice healer approached.

"Hello Quilya," Pirnae nodded a greetings. "Come to review healercraft
procedural guides again?"

"Yes," Quilya nodded. "May I have permission to pull the hides and review
them in the reading area?"

"Of course," Pirnae went back to the work on her desk. "You know where to
find them, and what to do. And, just a reminder...no klah near the
hides. Go ahead."

Quilya nodded again. "Thank you, Pirnae." She walked past the desk and
entered into the rows and rows of shelved hides, all rolled neatly and
stacked on shelves in order. She found the section that she was needing
and, after a few minutes, located the particular hide that she needed.
Unfortunately, it was set on a top shelf, a couple handspans out of reach
even when she stood on tiptoe. With a sigh, she turned to look around for
a stepladder.

It wasn't long before another entered the room, making his way to where he
knew the desk stood. At his feet trotted a canine who stopped when he did
and sat down. "Pirnae?" Lirit smiled in the direction of the desk. "You
around?"

"Hello Lirit," Pirnae said, hardly looking up at the harper. "You know
me. I'll be around long after the stone of this Weyr has crumbled to
dust. Something I can do for you?"

"Yes, I need a certain song, arrangement for gitar." The harper
explained, his tone of voice still jovial. "I was hoping you'd be willing
to pull it for me."

"Oh, yes, of course." Pirnae's tone didn't reflect enthusiasm at the
prospect of having to leave her desk, but, of course, duties were duties.
"If you'll just give me a few minutes I'll be right with you."

"Excuse me, Pirnae?" Quilya approached the other end of the desk. "May I
borrow a stepladder? The hides I need are out of reach."

"The stepladder's in the corner," Pirnae gestured, without looking up.
Then she paused and looked up at Quilya. "Would you mind doing me a favor
while you're at it? Lirit here is in need of a piece of sheet music.
Could you help him find it?"

Quilya looked at the harper, wondering why he needed help in the first
place. She opened her mouth slightly, but then stopped. She looked
again, noticing the staff he carried, and the canine. It dawned on her
that he was most likely without sight.

"Ah, certainly," she told Pirnae. She looked at Lirit. "I'll be glad to
help you find your music. Just let me get the ladder, and then we can go
retrieve it?"

"Sounds good to me." Lirit turned his smile in the direction of the
second feminine voice. "I can wait until you retrieve the documents you
need first if you like."

"Oh. Well." Quilya paused a moment. "Well, it won't really make a
difference to me. Since I have to retrieve both, we may as well get yours
first. Uhm. Let me just get the ladder now." She turned and walked over
to the corner, seized the ladder and then returned, carrying it folded, in
front of her. "All right...what is the piece you need?"

"It's 'In The Bloom of Spring' by a man named Faulker." Lirit followed
the sound of her movements, walking slowly so as to be sure not to run
into anything. "So it should be filed under F for his name."

"I would concur with that conclusion," Quilya said softly, bringing the
ladder to the music section and scanning the alphabetical section
headings. "D...E...F...here we are." She opened the stepladder and
carefully scaled it. "Faulker...Faulker...I see
Fale...Famenin...oh...Faulker." She hmmed. "He seems quite the prolific
composer. I'm sorry, but what was the title of the song again?"

"'In The Bloom Of Spring'." Lirit patiently repeated, coming to a stop at
the bottom of the stool and tilting his head up as if he were looking at
her. "You'll probably find several copies of it done in different
arrangements. I'm looking for the arrangement for gitar and voice."

"Oh, let me see." Quilya began sorting through the rolled hides,
unrolling them and checking for notation on the score. "No...that one is
for the lute...oh, here, I think this is it." She pulled a hide and
extended it to him. After a moment she said. "Oh, I am holding it out in
front of you."

"Ah." Lirit reached out and after a moving his hand a bit found the
hide. He took it and turned his smile upon the healer once more. "Thank
you. Might I have the name of my helper?"

"Oh!" Quilya had not meant to be so rude. "I'm Quilya." She paused a
moment. "Uhm...I'm sorry if this is a rude question...but...how are you
going to read that score?"

"I'm not." Lirit flicked the parchment and grinned. "Someone else is
going to read it for me and play it. I'm going to use my own form of
writing perhaps to make some notes, but mostly I'll just memorise."

"Oh." Quilya seemed to be saying that quite a bit. She wondered why, if
the harper was going to have somebody else read the music, he hadn't
simply dispatched somebody else to pick it up in the first place? She
held her tongue, though, and climbed down the stepladder. "You must have
a very good memory, uhm...Lirit, yes?"

"I guess you heard Pirnae." The harper nodded, "And yes, I do have a good
memory. I rather have to, though you'll find that most harpers cultivate
their memory so it's not really that unusual."

"Yes," Quilya nodded. Of course, she realized after the fact that Lirit
could not see the gesture. "I wish that my memory were more cultivated.
If I retain even half of tonight's studying, I will be doing better than
usual."

"Well, I have to admit that music makes things easier." Lirit explained,
"It introduces form and repetition and that can stick in your mind much
easier. It also helps that most of the time, words rhyme."

"Medical practice manuals are anything _but_ that," Quilya said glumly.
"Whoever wrote them must have been philosophically opposed to anything
approaching prose in the slightest." She gave a bit a sigh and hefted the
stepladder. "Well, I need to go retrieve my work. I hope you enjoy the
piece, Lirit."

"Thanks again, Quilya." Lirit lifted the music as if assuring her that he
had it. "And if you ever need a break, feel free to come find me. I can
provide you with scintillating conversation or even some soothing music if
you prefer."

Quilya smiled wanly. "Don't mention it. I'll keep your offer in mind if
I find time to take a break. Though, I imagine you likely will not be
spending much time in here, as they do frown upon recitation in the
records room."

"That, I fear, is very true." The harper shook his head mournfully. "Try
not to study _too_ hard, though. Your mind will turn to mush!" With one
last grin, Lirit turned and made his way from the record's room.

Quilya watched him go, then moved on to drag the stepladder to the section
of the room where the hides that she needed to study were. She set the
ladder down, opened it, and climbed up. "I think your warning comes a bit
too late, Lirit," she said softly to herself.

Last updated on the October 5th 2008

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Another Shelf, Another Stepladder