Chap. 113 The Girl and the Dolphins

Chap. 113  The girl and the dolphins

Rahman, the astronomer, had returned to his self-appointed task of managing the loading of equipment on the Sea Dragon.

K'ndar remained at the spot he'd fled to after being seasick on that ship. His teammates still aboard, he wasn't quite sure what to do now. He had no intentions of returning to the ship, which would mean running the gantlet of gossiping fisherfolk and seamen. No, he wasn't going back aboard the ship. What to do with himself? 

"Hello? Are you…um, are you lost? You're new here, aren't you?" a voice said behind him.

He looked behind him to see a girl…a very pretty girl, about his own age.

"I'm not lost," he said. Siskin chirped.

"Is that…a fire lizard? I've never seen one," she said.

"He is. His name is Siskin."

She sat down next to him.

"Um…can I …pet him?"

"Well," K'ndar hesitated.  Obviously, folks here had only a rudimentary understanding of fire lizards. 

"Fire lizards aren't 'pets'," he said, 'they're miniature dragons, and are bonded to their weyrmates. They can think for themselves, just like dragons. Let me ask him how he feels about it."

"He can understand you?"

"Oh, yes, they're highly intelligent. A friend of mine has three of them, and puts on shows at the gathers and markets for the kids. I've taught Siskin a few tricks, too. I don't have any treats right now, or I'd show you."

"That's okay, I believe you."

He felt the blue relax around his neck. "Siskin, would you let-excuse me, what's your name?"

"Devon," she said.

"Would you like Devon to give you a head scratch, Siskin?"

Siskin's eyes whirled an uncertain green and tightened his hold on K'ndar's neck.

He hissed, very softly. No.

"I hope you don't mind, but he's…he's not interested. I'm sorry, it's just how they are."

"It's okay. I understand, that's how dragons are, too, right? Because I can tell you're a dragonrider."

"I am, thank you, and while many dragons don't care to interact with other humans, my dragon LOVES to have scritches."

As long as she has sharp fingernails

K'ndar burst out with a laugh.

Devon look puzzled.

"My dragon just said that you can scratch him as long as you have sharp fingernails."

"So he can hear us, even if he's not here?"

"Yes, he can hear you through me."

She laughed, too, and extended her hands out. They were clean, but, like everyone else who worked with their hands, they were callused. 

"Looks like I can't do that, either. Most sea folk can hardly keep a nail on their fingers. Mine aren't sharp, not at all. But…I bet I could still give a good scratching. I know my cats like them just fine."

She sighed.

"It must be-must be fun, to be able to talk to a dragon," she said, "it must be fun, to be a dragonrider."

"It is. Especially now, when we no longer spend all our time fighting Thread. Before, all we had time for was fighting Thread, preparing for fighting Thread, or recovering from fighting Thread. 

Now we can do things, like other people, who had the time to learn other things, like a craft. Like me, I'm learning so much about so many things, I just want to know everything about everything."

"I know the feeling. I'm the same way..since Aivas introduced us to so many things, all I want to do is learn. For instance, I want to learn more marine biology. More oceanography. More things, like how do the tides work. Everytime I learn something it's like a dozen more questions pop into my mind."

She was, he thought, a lot like him.

"You're with the team that's going to survey Far Western?"

"Aye."

"You'll be on a good ship…Captain Sheila is a good sailor, and her Sea Dragon a happy ship," she said.

He felt his stomach tighten. Just the thought of going back aboard…

"Um, well, I doubt I'll be on it. I'm sure you've already heard the gossip about me, even though it's still morning. I'm the one who got seasick without ever leaving the port," he said, grimacing. 

"Oh……you…Oh." she said, unconsciously covering her mouth to hide a grin. "I'm sorry, but …yeah, I heard."

"But that's alright, because I don't need to go on the ship, I have a dragon."

"That's right and please, don't worry. Other people get seasick, too. Only a few people don't ever get seasick. It depends on the sea and how it makes the ship move."

"At the DOCK?"

She couldn't help herself. She laughed, just a little, but it wasn't a mean one. She touched his arm.

"Please, …?? who are you?"

"K'ndar of Kahrain Steppe Weyr."

"K'ndar, of course I heard about it. But please, it's okay.  It really is. We're-well, we pride ourselves on being seafolk, just like you dragonriders are, and I'm betting there are times when dragonriders laugh at us webfoots for not knowing anything about dragons."

"I don't know, I never heard it. Well. I guess maybe I have, but it was pretty embarrassing, for me to get sick within half an hour of my first time ever on a ship."

Devon shook her head. "It's still okay. Anyone here who says they've NEVER been seasick is usually lying."

"That's what we say about horses. Anyone who says they've never fallen off a horse is lying."

"Now see, that's what I meant. I've seen horses many times, but I've never ridden one, I would probably fall off!"

"Huh," he said, "That's exactly what a friend of mine said, she's never ridden a horse. I was riding before I could walk. And I've fallen off lots of times," he said. 

Part of him wanted her to go away so that he could nurse a grudge, and the smarter part of his mind said, are you crazy, look how pretty she is and she chose to talk to YOU.

"What…what do you, are you a fisher, like everyone else?"

"Well," she said, shaking her head, 'believe it or not, no. Even though I was born into a fisher family, I knew since I was little that fishing was not what I was meant to do. I mean, I can..I can fish, I had to learn, I was born into this life. But it wasn't what I wanted. I wanted something different. I remember the first time I saw dragons, the men from High Reaches Weyr were here, Searching, but I wasn't chosen. I felt bad about that," she said.

"It's okay, Devon, like you said, not everyone is born to something. I wanted to be a dragonrider forever even though I love horses. If I'd not been Searched, I'd probably still be at home, herding cows and avoiding my father.  I love horses, I'm a good herder, but…I was born to be a dragonrider."

Siskin chirped.

"Yes, and a fire lizard man," he said, scratching the blue.

Devon laughed. 

"So what is it you do?" he asked.

"Well, since Aivas introduced so many things, I'm interested in everything. Officially, I'm an oceanographer, but in my heart, I'm a dolphineer. The minute I saw one, years ago, I knew, that's what I wanted. To be with them. To work with them. When I was a kid I told my parents that when I grew up I was going to be a dolphin."

K'ndar laughed. "Dolphins are GREAT! We have a small pod of them living near my weyr."

"Do you know, a lot of folks still don't believe they can talk," Devon said.

"That's odd, but I know that there are people who are still afraid of dragons. Dolphins-I'd never seen one until I moved to the Weyr. They're so beautiful. They're friendly. 

 Sometimes, now, we'll be out swimming and the dolphins will come to play with the dragons. Dragons are fascinated by dolphins," he said, remembering. "I even helped pull a bloodfish off of one. That's when I learned how smart they are, how…like us they are."

"Then you kept a promise made to dolphins thousands of turns, I mean years ago. They don't forget, you know, once you've helped a dolphin, you have a friend and ally for life," she said. "Would you like to meet ours? Our pod is led by Tillek, you know, she's very, VERY old, she's the leader of all dolphins and everyone treats her like a queen."

"Like we treat our gold queens. Yes, I'd love to meet them, I've heard of Tillek from the ones at my weyr," he said.

Devon nodded, then stood, and putting her fingers to her lips, emitted an ear splitting whistle.

Wow, how did she do that, I'll have to learn that, he thought.

Within a few moments, he heard the familiar sounds of dolphins. They came leaping in their usual boisterous joy of being one with the sea.

"Wow, you'll have to teach me that. I've never heard such a loud whistle, and …you don't need a bell here?"

"Oh, we have a bell, but these dolphins-they're '''mine'''. Well, not mine like owning them, mine like being a member of their pod. Which I am, which is why I don't bother with the bell, they know me and the other dolphineers well enough to respond to the whistle."

A pod of six dolphins stopped at the base of the rock and squee'd

"Devon ello! Who your friend with little dragon?" said one.  

"Good morning, Honorable Tillek, please, this is K'ndar. He's a dragonrider from Southern Continent."

There was an outburst of squees and whistles.  The conversation continued unabated for several moments. 

Devon looked, amazed, at K'ndar. 

"They…they know you. You've been here before?"

"No…never, but …they know me? What do you mean?"

"Wait, they're still discussing you."

She stopped and listened to the dolphins, who were still talking amongst themselves.

"You..you can understand THEIR language?" he asked, amazed. 

"Some of it. Not all. And no, I can't speak it. Just…I've learned from them. Shh, for a minute, I have to concentrate."

But Tillek spoke first.

"Ello Keendar!! What you here for?"

He immediately took a cue from Devon, knowing he was in the presence of dolphin royalty. 

"Hello, Honorable Tillek, I am honored to meet you. I am here with other dragon riders to go to Far Western Continent."

Devon, perplexed, said, "Tillek. How you know K'ndar?"

There was another outburst of talk amongst them.

A very young dolphin, laughing, spoke up.

"Keendar! Mosar bite his dragon tail!" he said, giggling. 

K'ndar groaned and rolled his eyes. "Oh, for egg's sake, will I NEVER live that down?"

Devon frowned. "THAT is a story I'll have to hear. All you said was that you took a bloodfish off a dolphin."

"Well, that was the first time I ever met a dolphin and I didn’t do it alone. I had expert help."

"Yes, but, somehow, they equate it all to you. And now they say a mosar bit your dragon? 

Where in the world did you find a mosar?"

"Swash tell us. Prolar tell us," Tillek said, interrupting. "Keendar, you remember Promise?"

K'ndar grew solemn. He placed his hand over his heart. "Yes, Tillek. Never forget. Ever."

Devon put her hands on her hips. 

"OK, now what is going on? I have to know," she insisted, "I never heard this story. I know what a mosar IS but I've never seen one, never mind had any interaction with one. I thought I knew everything that went on with dolphins. And what is this 'promise'?"

"Devon," Tillek interrupted, "Keendar GOOD man. Friend of dolphins. He tell story if he want. We no make fun." She turned to the young male dolphin. "NO MORE," she said, admonishing him in human rather than in dolphin. 

If a dolphin could tuck its tail in submission, the male did. He shut up. 

Devon was impressed. 

"Keendar. You go on ship with Devon?"

"No, Tillek. I ride dragon. I don't like ship. Get sick."

"Oh, happens. Many times, human get sick. Is okay. No die. Just want to." 

K'ndar laughed despite himself. Then, just to show Devon he DID know a thing or two about dolphins, said, "Prolar tell you about diver?"

"Aye. Is being taken off beach now. What do with it?"

"Take to Landing. Put together like when alive so humans learn what diver is. Humans must learn NEVER hurt diver, make promise like me and others," he said, wondering if he sounded ridiculous speaking dolphin pidgin…and then realizing he didn't care.

"Not know what moo seum is."

"Building like humans live in. Humans not go underwater, like dolphins, so this way, we see it and learn."

"Okay. I go now. Appy to meet you, Keendar," she said, and with that, she turned and swam away, her honor guard falling into neat formation behind her.

K'ndar felt as if he'd been in the presence of some regal queen, akin to Ramoth.

"I'm impressed, K'ndar," Devon said, "you're able to talk to as if you'd been doing it all your life. Most folks who don't know them can't understand a word they say."

"Wellllll, I"ve been around animals all my life, and ..well, my mum used to say I have a 'way' with them. I did have to get my ear used to the way they talk, but once I had that, it's easy," he said.

D'mitran and D'nis are looking for you Raventh said.

He looked up to see his teammates standing on the wharf with T'ovar. 

He waved. D'mitran caught it and waved back, beckoning. 

"There's my teammates," he said to Devon, "I have to go now."

"Would it be..presumptuous of me to ask you about the mosar? I mean, I don't mean to pry but…"

He looked at her. "Um…I don't think I'll have the time, honestly," he said.

"Okay. But, there's something I have to tell you, before you go," she said.

"?"

"I'm going on the survey, too. And so are the dolphins."