(3.27.2761) Purple (Yenna, any)

[Rachel]

I'zaj glared at Yenna all throughout the lesson, and she did not care a whit. She did not flaunt anything. She did not shake her head with pride and let her glorious tresses attract attention. She tied it back like normal and calmly and obediently did her work and participated in class (not too much, but not too little) and docilely cared for Chelth. She was actually, in hindsight, probably a little *too* good. Some smart remarks and sneaky grins probably wouldn't have been amiss.

When I'zaj called her into his office, she walked in there like the beacon of innocence that she was.

"Purple?" I'zaj demanded as soon as she stepped in the door.

She stood proudly, not touching her hair. "Why not?"

I'zaj just looked at her, like he was trying to comprehend just how her squirrelly, random little brain worked, and just couldn't. "Why?"

"Why not?" She repeated. "I found the flowers on accident. So I did it. And hey! Look, no one's died this month or--"

The look he gave her could have frozen stone.

"I'm *celebrating.*" She insisted. "Party colors! In... in a non... non..."

((Obtrusive,)) Chelth supplied in a bored monotone.

"...obtrusive way."

I'zaj looked like maintaining his stern disciplinarian face was killing him inside. Yenna could tell. She elicited that face a lot. It varied across people, but the despairing struggle was universal.

((Hm. I like the sound of that. Universal despairing struggle.)) And Chelth took that random thought to her wallow to pore over, dooming some poor sap to infinite experiments in misery and tenacity.

Yenna heaved a dramatic sigh. "Look, I know purple's not really an official Eastern color, but I couldn't find teal, okay? I told you, I found the purple flowers, and I can't do gold 'cause I'm already blonde, and--"

"Get out of my office." I'zaj sighed.

Yenna bolted; as soon as she turned her back, her usual trouble-making, shite-eating smirk reappeared.

"And wipe that look off your face!" I'zaj yelled at her brilliant purple ponytail.

She flipped her hair at him before she shut his door behind her and erupted into maniacal giggles.

[Arielle]

T'val had noticed Yenna's new hair color choice, and to say the least he was....unsure of what to exactly he should feel. He wondered if she'd done it out of rebellion. If so, he was decidedly disapproving. But if it was for some other reason, or just for fun, then he supposed it was fine. It wasn't hurting anybody. She'd been called into I'zaj's office without delay at the lessons end and the freedom of the Weyr had begun to rub off on the young man. To the point where his curiosity trumped anything else he might do with his time, so that he waited around for their Weyrlingmaster to be done with her so he could ask her why.

When Yenna exited I'zaj's office and broke down in rather terrifying giggles, T'val nearly lost his nerve. This whole social independence thing was still new to him, even after six months bonded to as exuberant and extroverted a dragon as his Luigith. Still, he had a question, she was a fellow classmate, there was no reason he shouldn't talk to her. T'val stepped forward and the other Weyrling's laughter infected him enough that he smiled. "Hello, Yenna. Might I ask the cause of your mirth?"

[Rachel]

Yenna's cackling died away as T'val stepped forward. Truth be told, she forgot about him a lot. She saw Luigith, bouncing around and doing some things, but somehow her brain was just not pairing the two of them. She blinked at him, caught off guard and surprised. As much as she didn't notice some of her classmates, she also expected to be borderline ignored as well. As such, T'val's polite interest was... odd.

Chelth jerked away from her philosophical thoughts to pay close attention. Deviations from behavioral norm! Excellent!

"Cause of my mirth?" Yenna echoed, quickly regaining control of her expression and going back to sly. She threw him a fearless, satisfied smile. "I'zaj kicked me out! Of his office, anyway."

((We will repeat this experiment with the hair coloration.)) Chelth determined from their wallow. ((This is all quite fascinating.))

[Arielle]

T'val blinked for a moment, surprised. He supposed plenty of people might not know him well. Heck, he didn't know himself well. Half the time he felt like an amorphous individual being dragged about by the personality that was his brown. He had a fleeting thought that he ought to see about fixing that, but he didn't know how. He returned her smile.

"I suppose you're not too in trouble if you're laughing about it, at least." The thought of upbraiding an authority so was still very unsettling for the young man, who had only just been a burgeoning authority figure himself. The good boy, the baby, the serious, straight-laced one. That was who he'd always been. But he wasn't sure he wanted to remain that. He wasn't sure it was enough anymore. "I am curious as to why you changed your hair?"

Part of Tori really wanted to see if she could maybe give him a spot of color in his hair, too. The interesting, deep purple of her hair set off her skin and eyes attractively. Not that the Brown Weyrling was a stranger to physical attraction, nor was that the only thing that intrigued him about the wild Yenna, but that wasn't something he'd been paying attention to over the past six months. Not since he'd...run away from his own wedding plans. A sinking feeling nearly drew T'val into reticence but he fought it away.

One hand settled in his belt and the other went up to twine through his blond locks, T'val watched the other weyrling carefully. Luigith was out in the lake, swimming for fun and attempting to start a game with some firelizards and the occasional older dragon, who indulgently diverted him before going back to their own pursuits. Tori didn't say anything to his brown, but Luigith was always good about knowing exactly what his rider was feeling. It must be because the young man's own insecurities and worries were never hidden from himself, and the young dragon was as much a part of T'val as was his skin.

((My, oh, my, Mine! Why so much worry? Ask and ye shall receive, as they say! What's the worst that could happen? She should say no?)) Luigith asked cheerfully of T'val, The young man pressed his lips together, debating. His dragon was right. Nothing baaaaaad could happen if he only asked, right? And he didn't want all of his hair colored! Maybe just the front, to liven things up. Make his own mark, even if it was on himself. "Uhm." He fidgeted just a bit, before a mental nudge from his brown pushed him over the edge. "Perhaps I might get a little color some time as well?" he asked, after she'd spoken of her reasons.

[Rachel]

Yenna waved off the mere suggestion that she could be in trouble. Or that being in trouble would be reason not to laugh. She'd laugh at what she liked, trouble or not. "Nah, I'm fine." She said cheerfully. "He already knew I'm crazy."

((Hardly crazy,)) Chelth murmured. ((Just... interesting.)) Her usual monotone warmed slightly, making Yenna come perilously close to feeling warm and gooshy and they both shuddered from the emotional overload. ((My little variable.))

Yenna shoved it all away and focused back on T'val before she smiled or something. "I did it 'cause I could," she said with another jerky shrug. "I found the dye. So I used it. He never said we *couldn't.*" She reached up and nervously fingered the ends of her shortened hair. She still resented that mandated haircut. She looked stupid with short hair.

T'val was also touching his hair. Which was also blonde. And fidgeting.

*No way.*

((Do it!)) Chelth commanded suddenly, almost making her jump.

Despite Chelth's quick assessment and response, Yenna was still surprised when T'val actually... asked. She kind of stared at him for a few seconds, mentally gawking. Well, that was unexpected.

And Cheith would have a fit.

"Sure!" She threw him a dazzling smile. "What color would you like? I use flowers I find outside. You're blonde too, so most anything will stick. Except reds, reds never like to, but hey, find us enough flowers, and we can make it happen anyway!" It would just look like some kind of ritual slaughter when they finished, but hey. This would be fun.

[Arielle]

T'val gave Yenna a small sort of smile. "I guess so," he said about her crazy comment, though he wasn't entirely sure he would call her crazy. His and Eva's mothers had been crazy when he left home, not that they knew he left, but that stupid wedding had been ridiculous. Turned the woman he'd looked up to his entire life into someone almost unrecognizable.

When she stared at him for even asking he didn't know what she would say next. Was she mad that he wanted to have a little bit of what she had? Did she think he was the crazy one? And then she responded with cheer and positivity. Fantastic! It was pretty exhilarating, doing something he would never have done before. He didn't know what to think. Flowers for dye, that reminded him of the Weavers back home. They always had flower collections to organize and unsuspecting children to drag into helping with the dye making.

"Uhm," T'val wasn't entirely sure what color to go for. He hadn't really thought that far. Luigith bounced from his position and flew from the Lake to the Barracks. ((Ooh, do blue! Or green! Something that will stand out!)) The young man smiled at his dragon's enthusiasm. "Well, Luigith suggests blue or green, if either of those are doable? I don't really mind what color though. I hadn't really thought that far," he confessed, hoping she wouldn't think less of him. He could probably use a friend as rambunctious as Yenna.

[Rachel]

((I insist that Luigith help us,)) Chelth said stubbornly to Yenna. Then she turned to her brother. ((Luigith, how do you feel about us helping to color his hair?)) She needed a starting ground, after all. A control to measure against.

Yenna was used to her dragon's machinations and calculating ways and ignored all of it. "Blue's kind of hard," she admitted. "I mean, we can find it, but not a lot, you know? And it washes out easy, and it's really light no matter how you much you try." She squinted at his hair, thinking. "Maybe in a few places, really concentrated? Green's super easy. Hey, you could match Luigith's eyes!" She didn't think that brown was fundamentally capable of having warm-colored eyes. "When do you want to do this? And fair warning, I'zaj will probably glare at you but you shouldn't get in trouble. We had to get our hair cut, but we never promised not to dye it." She touched her shoulder-length hair self-consciously. That had sucked.

[Arielle]

Luigith bounced when Chelth addressed him, skipping over to her. ((I think it's a great idea! What can I do to help?)) He blinked at Chelth, wanting to please and help her however he could, as he always felt towards his sisters and other greens and golds.

T'val's face took on a thoughtful, but interested, cast while Yenna was discussing logistics of color. "Green is good. Matching Luigith's eyes is a nice idea. Sure, let's do green!" He grinned, feeling lighthearted at the idea of doing something that was his choice alone. Not that Impression hadn't been good, but it was an outside choice. Like his unhappened marriage was. He shrugged at her warning about I'zaj. "Don't worry. I'zaj doesn't scare me. I've got worse things to look forward to if other indiscretions are followed up on." He hadn't told anyone about his betrothed, but he didn't want to hide things either. It wasn't in his nature.

[Rachel]

It was so... bouncy. Chelth cocked her head at him. Was it always so bouncy? Would it bounce, say, all the way down a hill? What about dodging projectiles? ((You can help us find the grass and flowers we need.)) She said in her oddly sweet monotone. ((And bounce at the same time.))

Aww. He was cute. Like a puppy. She wanted to throw sticks; would he fetch them? Maybe not literally, but...

The disregard for potential I'zaj wrath she liked, though. She liked it a lot. "Great." She sent him a not quite sunny smile. Maybe partly cloudy. Her smile was real, but it just wasn't fighting all the way through. "Don't we all," she said. "Don't we all. So when do  you want to go out and find us some plant dye?"

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[Arielle]

Luigith wriggled, he did, but only a little. He wasn’t entirely a puppy, he just liked helping pretty ladies like Chelth! ((That sounds great! What flowers and grasses do you need, my lady?)) He wasn’t sure what she meant about the bouncing though. It was just how he walked, he couldn’t exactly help it. ((When do you need them by?))

Tori once again returned Yenna’s smile, his a little sad on the edges. “Whenever is good for me. I mean, it’s free time now, right? Would now be okay with you? I don’t really have much else to do.” He liked this, this making friends thing. He hoped Yenna would be his friend. In some ways, he was still the little boy trying not to drown in the sea of noise that always surrounded his older siblings. He didn’t hold it against them. He never could. They were family and he loved them, and he had always been the quiet one. T’val didn’t resent that.

[Rachel]

"Now is fine." Yenna said brightly, running her fingers through her purple streak again. "Let's go. It's a little bit of a walk, but I think all you need is some good grass. So nowhere really specific. Just... outside a little bit, to get away from the crushed stuff." She hadn't dyed anything green in a long time, but grass stains were a thing for a reason. "Haha, we're grass staining your hair."

Chelth's tail wiggled a bit as she prowled behind Yenna, watching T'val to make sure he didn't try anything, but mostly overjoyed at a malleable young experiment. ((We need the kind Yenna points out to you--BOUNCE!))

Oh, this would be a terrific game! What else could she order Luigith to do and get away with it...

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[Arielle]

"Okay," Tori said, following Yenna outside. A grin appeared on his lips at her comment about grass-staining. "Yeah, we are, I guess. So should I just rub my head on the ground then?" he joked, brightening up at the prospect for something he'd decided entirely on his own. This wasn't terrifying, not like leaving home had been. But getting married had been scarier than running away.

((Grass is fun. Are there really all that many different kinds of grass? I don't know much about plants,)) Luigith asked, interested, as he followed along with Chelth. ((I can't help bouncing, you know, it's just how I walk.)) He didn't mind her asking him to bounce. He liked bouncing, and it truly wasn't like he could change how he walked if he wanted to.

[Rachel]

"As funny as that would be, not quite." Yenna almost pursed her lips in concentration as they prowled around. "Where do you want it? All over? That'll take a *lot* of grass. You might need to pick a spot or something." She could mention later how long it was going to take for her to rub the crushed blades of grass into his hair.

((I do not know. I have not the slightest interest.)) Chelth said, atonal, watching Yenna wander the grass, on a mission. ((--BOUNCE! However, she says that grass feeds our dinner, so I suppose we--BOUNCE--must tolerate it. BOUNCE BOUNCE BOUNCE.))

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[Arielle]

T'val grinned, following where she led as they walked. "I guess only in the front," he said, fingering his bangs. "If it takes a lot to do the whole thing." Which made sense. There was only so much color in a fistful of grass. "Where did you learn to do this sort of thing?"

Luigith wasn't even trying to bounce now, he was just walking. ((I think grass is nice. It's fun to walk on and watch get blown by the wind or breezes made by our wings.)) He dropped his head to sniff at the grass for a moment before looking towards Chelth again. ((I've seen the food eat grass before. They seem to like it, but I don't think it's so tasty. I prefer meat.))

[Rachel]

"Around," Yenna said evasively. "Back at the hold. Took a lot of experimenting, but I'd like to think I got it down pretty well by now." She pointed further ahead. "We're going up there. See where the grass is really wet and green? That's what we want. And you're going to have green mush in your hair for awhile. Just so you know. I hope there wasn't anyone you wanted to impress, because you're going to look ridiculous."

If he said so. Chelth wasn't so convinced on the merits of grass. It was just a thing that was there, to be forgotten or exploited as she saw fit. ((Yes, they do eat it, but we have sharp teeth. For eating real things, like meat.)) She snapped her jaws for emphasis. ((Can you bounce higher? Or further? Or is that it?))

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[Arielle]

T'val nodded, listening as they continued walking. He looked where she was pointing and saw the patch of grass in question. "I think I can deal with a bit of green mush in my hair." He shrugged sheepishly at the idea that he had anyone to impress. He wanted to impress Yenna, he supposed, but he also felt like he was floating when he thought about the idea of needing people's approval. At least here he did. The Weyr was very, very different from how things had been back home in Southern Hold. Where he had a bride and his family and her family and the Lord Holders to impress.

((I didn't suggest we eat it!)) Luigith protested, bouncing along next to Chelth. ((I don't know what you mean about bouncing.)) He didn't, for the most part. This was just how he walked! ((What about you?)) he asked, looking at her. ((Can YOU bounce?))

[Rachel]

"Good!" Yenna said brightly. "It's not much different from washing it, really. Just for a really, really long time." And I'zaj would probably roll his eyes, but surely that was a good thing after all the awful stuff recently, right? She tugged at the ends of her purple streak. "I should get more purple while we're out here. Chelth, remember where we were?"

((Never.)) The young green sighed, utterly apathetic. ((I never remember anything. That is your job.))

It was worth a try. She picked a meadow-looking area at random and led their bouncy little group into it. A little sprig of her preferred purple flower caught her eye and she wandered in that direction. "Look," she said. "See how wet and strong and dark this is? Find grass or something like that. Something that'll ooze when you crush it. Get a bunch, then we'll start with the smearing. It's fun! Like fingerpainting your hair."

Chelth sneezed at Yenna's flower and crouched low, prowling through the overgrown area. ((I do not bounce.)) She informed Luigith primly. ((I do not remember silly things, and I do not bounce.))

[Arielle]

For the most part, T'val followed Yenna's lead, walking and looking as she told him to, at least for now. He wasn't a sheep, but she was more experienced in this area and that was worth listening to. "Alright," he said, wandering off a ways to kneel on the ground and start collecting grass. It stained his fingers as he plucked it, but he never cared about getting dirty in the pursuit of other things. It wasn't like the world was terribly clean all over, after all. "I haven't finger painted in turns."

Luigith snorted at Chelth's prim tone. ((Why is something your rider finds important ever silly? If they think it's important, we owe it to them to at least listen and support them, don't we?)) he asked, flopping onto his belly in a lush area of grass, enjoying its coolness against his hide. ((Like they support us. And bouncing is fun! Or do you not liiiike fun?)) The question was verging on petulance and their conversation was that of small children. Not that the hefty brown really cared about that, but he knew his T'val thought the background of it was amusing.

[Rachel]

"Well, you're about to start!" Yenna chirped. She glanced up at the bright sky. "We can just do it out here. The light is perfect. It's not like it's one of those fancy dyes you need to wash out soon. Or, um, did you need to get back?" Sometimes she forgot that other people had, you know, social lives and things. They were still Weyrlings, but maybe he wanted to hang out with some classmates or something.

Chelth thought about her needling of Cheith, compared to Luigith's innocent hopping. ((I think we have different ideas of fun.)) She said reasonably, not wanting to corrupt him, or ruin a potential experiment subject. ((If she thinks it is important, then I will consider it. But if I disagree, then we shall just disagree and discuss it. But I will not just blindly support her.)) She might be wrong. Yenna was not perfect; she was wrong in her homework with almost alarming frequency. Chelth herself was better at some drills, and Yenna had quickly learned to yield to Chelth's intuitive understanding.

[Arielle]

"No, I don't need to get back," Tori replied, looking around for a good juicy bit of grass to start. He truly didn't, as he didn't have terribly many friends he would be inclined to relax with back at the Barracks. Besides, an adventure was just what he needed right now. "Unless you do?" He squatted down in a nice lush patch and began tearing the leaves off their roots. "So once I've got enough what do I need to do with them?"

((I didn't mean blindly supporting at all!)) Luigith replied, ever cheerful. ((But if it's not going to hurt anyone, even if you wouldn't do it yourself, why not support her anyway? It's always good to have someone who will support you always.)) He flopped down on his belly in the grass, splaying his legs and neck out much like an excitable puppy would. ((Different kinds of fun are good too! What do you think is fun, Chelth?))

[Rachel]

"Nope. I have nothing to do with my life except her." Yenna crouched down and began piling lush grass blades. "Get a LOT. Like, more than you think. Way more. We'll make a pile and then bring 'em back. We need to find a good slab of rock to put under your neck, and then we're gonna crush them over you with a rock." She slanted a look at him. "This might get fun. We might need to improvise. Unless you're really into massaging your head with a rock."

To Chelth, 'always' meant 'blindly,' but she didn't want to argue it. She knew she was right. So she just let it go and curled up in a neat little ball, eyes on Yenna, who worked industriously. ((Fun is... studying people. To see how they think. And to test that theory by providing stimulation that makes them act in the way that I guessed. We like to watch people.))

[Arielle]

T'val did as he was told, getting as much grass as he could get his hands on for his hair. He put all he could carry in a neat pile and went to get more. As he plucked the grass, the young man glanced towards Yenna also working at the grass. "No, a head massage with a rock doesn't sound fantastically pleasant." He reached up to rub at his scalp in anticipated pain. "I'm glad we won't have to be limited to massaging my head with a rock."

Luigith was a lot more flexible in meaning than Chelth, especially about the term 'always'. Always meant without fail, not without knowledge. She was cute in her little ball of cuddliness, though the bouncy brown had the feeling that his green sister wouldn't appreciate any attempts at cuddling. ((Test what theory? Does that mean you experiment on people? Isn't that not good to do without their permission?)) Luigith lay in the grass and rolled onto his back, splaying his limbs hither and yon. His T'val told him it was important to take others' wishes into account when asking them to do things. He couldn't see how prodding them one way or another was any different.

[Rachel]

"Me too. I feel like I'zaj would yell at me. I like him more when he's yelling at the Myth Busters." Yenna said candidly. ((Chelth, come help me. We need a LOT. Boys' hair is hard to dye.))

((As you wish.)) Chelth said blandly, pulling herself to her feet, and honestly, kind of glad to be excused from her irreconcilable conversation. ((Apologies, Luigith. I must assist. You might suggest doing the same for him.)) Under Yenna's direction, she began mowing down the taller grasses with teeth and claws.

"What I usually do is lie on my back with my hair over a rock, then crush the dye into my hair with another rock." Yenna said to T'val. "I have a rock in my wallow with my stuff I use, 'cause it's perfect and flat. I found it near the lake. But what we're gonna have to do with you is use our hands, 'cause your hair is short. So come lie down so I can reach your hair. We need to break the strands so they're bleeding a little, and then muss it all in like you're washing it. Let them get more as we need it, but we should just get started so we know how much more to get."

OOC: fastforwardfastforwardfastforward

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[Arielle]

T'val laughed and couldn't agree more with Yenna. He did as instructed and went to lie down near the other Weyrling, bringing his grass pile with him. Luigith gleefully followed Chelth and mowed down grass easily as well. "So we break it like this, right?" he asked, crushing blades of grass in his hands, leaving a few green spots on his skin. "What next, just mash it in?" This was feeling a little silly, but Tori was committed now and didn't want to stop.

[Rachel]

"More or less," Yenna said. She showed him her hands, already smeared with a faint lime green. "Now we wash your hair with grass. Ah... Prepare yourself." It was not helpful instruction, or encouragement. She was not a professional instructor. Or encourager. Or socialite, period.

((A green human.)) Chelth said, amused. ((Will he behave as green dragons?))

((You mean, like you?)) Yenna retorted. ((Doubt it. Bring me more grass.))

((You owe me.)) Chelth flicked Luigith with her tail. ((Bring it in,)) she told him. ((Then we get more, and more, until they are satisfied.))

[Arielle]

Tori offered Yenna a lopsided grin. "Is there much I can do to prepare myself?" he joked, leaning back and relaxing as the fun began. Luigith bounced around, piling up the grass he mowed and shoving it gleefully towards the two humans before going back to the fields for more. T'val grabbed some of his hair and worked on massaging the grass in his hands into his hair, wondering if he'd smell like grass or nothing. He liked the smell of outdoors, of grass. It was a nice, green smell. Better than firestone, though he supposed he didn't have a choice about smelling that for the rest of his life. In truth, Tori didn't mind, not when he had his Lu with him too for the rest of his life.