Journeywoman Nadesda of
High Reaches Weyr
20th day of Spring, Nineteenth Turn of the Tenth Pass, High Reaches Weyr
Kitchens
Heat and a large, unidentifiable morass of pungent odors assail
those that pass through the herb-strung doorways and into the
broad depths of hearth-filled kitchens. From the earliest hour of
morning to shadows of latenight, the cavern is never empty:
mealtimes bring vast crowds of drudges and workers scurrying
'neath cooks watchful eyes, while at other times a handful of
clean hands tend the many fires and huge ovens that bake and
broil breads and meat. A smaller hearth sits near-idle but for
the ever present pots of klah, soup, and stew kept warm and
ready.
Several anonymous doorways lead into storage caverns, stairwells,
and cabinets that line the walls... surely anything needed can be
found.. somewhere.
On the perch is Don.
You see Brimming Cauldron here.
Nadesda is here.
Obvious exits: Caverns
Kaetetrini comes in quickly, her cheeks bright red, and her
breath quick, this place is /full/ of dragonriders! She stops
when she sees someone, and hangs shyly at the door,
"Journeywoman Nadesda?" she asks cautiously, in a thick
Tillek accent.
Ladel at the ready upon the familiar sound of the swishing
doorway, Nadesda swirls about to confront the intruder. "Ah
/thought/ Ah told ya there's n'more bu...Oh. Journeywoman
Trini." The kitchen implement is set down upon the counter
from its weiling position before the head cook smiles
angelically. "'Ow can Ah 'elp ya?"
Cheeks as red as redfruits, and a brusque introdution take the
breath out of the girl. "I--I--" she stammers, unable
to get anything out, didn't she get her letter? She's skin
Ashpodel alive if she didn't....
"Ah was expectin' another rascal t'come bargin' int' mah
kitchens again. They've been stealin' bubblies as of
late..." As if this is the fact responsible for her rash
actions, Nadesda shrugs. "So..." Eyes drift toward the
ceiling before she clicks. "Ah remember why yer 'ere. Okay
then...Ah made m'favorite recipe earlier on fer you t'try."
Kaetetrini blinks, not used to such directness, "Aye?"
she manages to get out, coming farther into the kitchen, she
wasn't expecting something to be /ready/ for her. "Wha--wha'
did y'make, may I ask?"
Nadesda has too much time on her hands...and still she's left a
tad stressed at the end of the day. "Well, it's still
cookin'. It's a rump roast. Melts in yer mouth, it does." A
pause as she bustles towards another side of her kitchen space.
"Would y'like somethin' t'drink?"
Kaetetrini's eyebrows raise at the thought of a rumproast, she
had to get here pretty quick from the Master Sea Hold, so she
wouldn't get 'caught'. "Aye," she nods, loose curls
bouncing, "please." She moves her cloak aside, and puts
her rucksack on the floor, and begins to inspect the kitchen, her
head turning in strange angles to take it all in.
"Ah hope klah'll do. Sweetener? Cream?" Two mugs are
quickly set upon the counter before her with a light thunk as
Nade smiles towards Trini. "Sit down, relax. How're things
going with you at Tillek?" Obviously, news travels slowly or
else she wouldn't of inquired about such a thing.
Kaetetrini looks up at the woman and blinks, surely she's
mad...."E'erthin's fine at Tillek I suppose," she says
quietly, looking down at the klah, much too dark for her tastes,
that suddenly seemed to appear before her. She takes a tentative
sip and tries very hard to not make a face, "How has
everything been w'ye?" she asks, setting the mug down
gently, and non-chalantly pushing it away.
Nadesda shrugs as she places a miniture pitcher of cream and a
tiny bowl of sweetener upon the table. "Oh...nothin' much
really. Same ol' schedual. But, shards those hatchlings eat a
lot." A wonderlous look flashes across her face as she too
settles herself down at the table. "Enough about me
though...Yer gettin' yer Master's requirments? Ah plan t'do tha'
soon. Never found the time though." A grimace.
Kaetetrini furrows her brows together, "Y'ave t'make
time," she says gently, reaching for the creamer and adding
a generous amount to her klah, so that it hardly resembles the
dark brown anymore, but rather a pale tan. "I--ah," she
flushes, and averts her eyes,"made m'own time," she
admits, but then looks up again and smiles, "I'm hopin'
t'ave it, Sybil, she's my Master, said tha' she would vouch for
me, when I came t'Paradise." She beams in a childish manner.
"Yeah, Ah know Ah 'ave t'make time...it's just how. Ah wish
ya g'luck cause Ah know you'll make it. No question about that.
Ah'll 'ave t'be down there fer when you get re-knoted. How's
Sybil doin'?" Amiable talk is passed with the fellow baker
journeywoman as Nade smiles rather chramingly. The topic of why
Trini found her own time is left untouched, as the chef duily
notes the avertion of the eyes.
Kaetetrini looks back at Nade, and beams a smile at her,
"She was doin' fine, th'last time I got a letter from
her," she says gently, "She..works awful hard,
y'know?" A slight worried look comes to the young woman's
face. "I worry tha' she'll hurt herself, oneday.." she
shrugs.
Nadesda nods sympathetically as the last time she saw Sybil was
when she was hunched over a desk. "Yeah. She's a really good
master." A firm nod of her head sets that quote into place
before she looks towards an enclosed hearth. "Ah should
check tha'..." Up and at it she goes, jabbering aimlessly --
yet listening intently -- as she goes. "So, what're th'
specifics of yer project?"
Kaetetrini ahems sloftly, having just come up with them this
morning, she's still unsure as the articulation of them.
"I'm thinkin' o'makin' a cookbook, an' havin' recipes from
all different places in it," she announces proudly,
"Differentiated-like."
Suprise and an agreeing nod is soon given readily towards the
approved answer -- Nade looking towards the woman from her
crouched over position. "Tha' would be wonderful, Trini. Ah
really need some new recipes 'round 'ere. Ah try t'make up mah
own but..." A shrug. "...they don't always work out,
y'know?" Gloved hands dive into the hearth to remove a
roasting pan, steaming arising from under it's cocked lid.
Kaetetrini takes in a deep breath, inhaling the fumes,
"Aye," she says in a bit of a dreamy voice, "I
know what y'mean...."
"Okay...'Ere we go. Ah dun't 'ave a name fer it." A
meek smile is shone before she unreveils her masterpiece...or so
she'd like to call it. Inside the pot sits a fanciful array of
both pinapple and redfruit slices, glimmered with speckles of
various herbs. In the center sits a mound of juicy, bubbling meat
with -- as always -- oats littering the bottom and sucking up
most of the broth.
Kaetetrini's mouth begins to water, and she hope she doesn't look
like a starving idiot as the roast comes out of the oven. Oh it
smells /good/! She gets a bit more comfortable, Nade's familiar
demenour,and the lack of dragonriders in the kitchen making her
feel better. She gazes at the masterpeice, Trini thinks that is
one. "It's lovely, Nadesda," she breaths, her eyes
going over each part of it, "It dinnae have a name?"
A wink. "Not until y'come up with one, it doesn't. Thankee.
It was a spur of the moment thing a couple o' sevendays ago. For
the Candidates." Nade's eyes look over Trini's initial
reaction before picking up her forgotton ladel and a knife to
match. "See...It's cooked to a medium-rare. Th' oats give it
a particularly tastey flavor." Impish twinkle twitters in
her eyes as she knows her craze over the grain is well known
throughout the craft.
Not being able to keep in a giggle, Trini puts her hand over her
mouth, and it at least able to keep it silent. "Aye!"
she manages to say, with a nod of her golden curls, "I'm
sure it's absolutely delicious!" She looks down at the beast
again, and hmms, "Y'havna thought o'any kind o' name?"
she asks dubiously, it wasn't supposed to be here job to come up
with names.
Nadesda twitches her nose thoughtfully, eyes drifting to gaze
towards the ceiling, before she shrugs. "How's about
'Reaches Paradise'?" A giggle follows her little combination
before she looks helplessly towards the food. "Ah really
dun't know. 'Ere, let's 'ave some right now, okay?" Eager to
show off her abilities, she opens a cupboard to remove two dinner
sized plates.
Kaetetrini nods enthusiastically, "Oh aye!" she agrees,
holding her stomach and tyring to stifle the growl that emits
from it....oh dear, how rude of her! "What about something
like Reaches Roast?" it is a roast after all, and might fine
smelling roast....
Nadesda stretches and yawns as she looks at the new day with a
smile.
Knife slides easily into the plump meat of the roast -- her own
mouth watering with anticipation of the first bite. Yet Nadesda's
being generous today and gives the first slice -- topped with a
pineapple and redfruit slice each, sided with a pile of oats --
to Trini. "You first." Eager eyes watch for her
reaction to the taste as a fork is placed along with the plate.
Kaetetrini giggles, oh she get's served first!! That /never/
happens at home! She takes the fork and knife, and turns, sitting
very ladylike, and cuts a piece off and puts in her mouth. Like
the proffessional she is, she chews with no experssion, and then
swallows, a broad smile creeping across her face, "A
triumph!" she exclaims, with a girlish giggle.
Nadesda waits patiently for Trini's face -- her own masking hope
as she's never seen anyone react from her own food. She just
leaves it out in the caverns and comes back out to clean it up
later...But upon this exclimation of triumph, she cheers, her
arms waving about in the air. Quickly shushing herself, she
beams. "It's good then? Reaches Roast it is."
Kaetetrini giggles, taking her finger to daintily wipe away some
juice from her mouth, "Aye," she nods, sounding a bit
older now, "it's wonderful." But she can come up with a
better name than Reaches Roast, surely...
"Thank you..." And, after such praise, she has to go
after her own peice. "It does look better than the last
batch." Nadesda soon has her fork weilded, instead of her
ladel, and has taken a bite of the meat. Unlike Trini, she's
unable to keep such a straigh face and breaks into yet another
suprised looks. "It /is/ good."
Kaetetrini nods, "Aye, I told y'so!" she admonishes.
"T'is excellent. Do y'truely want t'call it Reaches
Roast?" she was only joking when she thought up the name...
Nadesda simply beams once again as she continues to eat her
portion ravenously. Around swallowing and chunks of meat --
during which she attempts to remain polite -- she says:
"Nyah. It was jus' th' first thing offered, so Ah thought it
sounded good." Twang of an accent comes more fully at this
time now as she's more relaxed after her master-piece has been
accepted.
Kaetetrini blinks, watching the woman eat, my and Trini thought
she was hungry? "What t'call it then?" she asks,
reaching for her klah and taking a sip, don't people drink wine
anymore?
"Ah 'ave no clue..." Nade shakes her head, bewildered,
as she stares down into the roasting pan. "Oh...Ah wrote
down th' recipe fer ya once Ah knew you were comin'." A
scrape of hide is reached for and recovered to be handed over
towards Trini. "It's all right there." A short hiatus
ensues as she considers names.
Eyebrows are raised, "Thankee," she nods and smiles
genuiniely, "I didna mean fer ya t'write it fer me,"
she looks down at the hide, and then back with a smile, "So
what is it called?
Nadesda grins impudently. "Dun't'cha see? It's written right
there." A graceful finger points to the top of the piece of
hide which is, remarkably, left blank. A chuckle follows before
she says: "How's about 'Stick-To-Yer-Ribs Roast'?"
Kaetetrini looks down at the hide quickly and then up at Nade,
she's never been one to get jokes, "Stick-To-Yer-Ribs
Roast?" that's just as bad as Reaches Roast, but at least
Reaches Roast was easier to say. "Tha's a good name!"
she nods, and takes another sip of her klah. Whooboy...at least
it tastes good.