Carry You

Weiss roused and looked at her clock... It was about 6am, so it was around time to start getting ready and get around to help Lilyana with morning feeding. She went into her closet and got dressed, still feeling like an overstuffed holiday hen. The only time she felt normal was when she was riding because they stripped down to pretty much riding pants and a shirt and boots. She was too used to wearing only a few layers, then adding more when going outside. Inside Schnee manor, it was warm enough to only need a dress and her clothes were made of thick materials in order to keep her warm in the cold Atlassian weather. But it was what it was and she was starting to kind of get used to it... She found Sayaka and the little bird led her out to Lilyana. "Good morning, Weiss!" The falconer smiled at her warmly and Weiss managed a small smile herself. "Good morning, Lilyana." She was excited to be able to be around the birds again. Though, yeah, she would need to eventually get used to killing animals... Tomorrow was the eagle expedition if she had remembered correctly. They had her planner made up and picked up, but she hadn't had a chance to sit down and fill it out yet. She'd been so focused on learning that she hadn't thought about her planner. Plus, it wasn't like she had assignments or anything yet... She wasn't entirely certain when she'd start lessons. She really hoped it was soon. She was fine studying on her own, but having the direction of someone that knew the source material and was trained helped immensely. "So here to help with morning feeding then? I can also help teach you some leatherworking. You'll have to learn to make hoods and such, so it's an important skill." Weiss nodded. "Yes, I am. We can maybe continue on with the jesses lesson you started with me?" Lilyana had started her off on anklets and jesses first as they were the easiest bits to make of falconry equipment. Anklets were just a bit of leather that went around a bird's leg and jesses went through the eyelet on the anklet if one was holding a bird or tethering them. For the most part, the birds weren't tethered if they were part of the crew... Lilyana chose to keep her own birds tethered at least while weathering them since they didn't know the property as well as the night and morning crews. "That sounds fine." Lilyana smiled at her and Weiss returned it. It was starting to feel a bit more natural to settle down into this, though she still didn't really have a daily routine yet. She was looking forward to getting a daily routine going again. She just... It was hard to not have any sort of structure in her life at all. It made her feel terrible and like she was doing something wrong. She'd never had so much idle time on her hands. She was filling it with reading so she could hopefully just bide her time until lessons started. With that, Lilyana handed her a bucket and showed her which mews to toss the quail into. The caracaras and owls all seemed to appreciate the food, though the morning crew was just getting in and waking up. Eventually, they finished with the feeding and Lilyana took Weiss into her workshop, showing her how to measure a bird's foot for an anklet and how to cut, shape, then refine the leather. It definitely ate up her hands and she frowned as she looked at Lilyana's hands which were hard, rough, and calloused. The woman chuckled. "If you stick with it, your hands will end up like mine. It's easy to tell you grew up soft and sheltered just by your hands. But that's not bad. Everyon'es life story is different." "Will getting them healed every time I work inhibit this?" She knew she'd need to get used to it in time, but it did legitimately hurt her hands to work with the leather. It was decently soft and supple but the working with tools and such did tear them apart. "Technically, yes. But until you get used to it, I won't say anything against it. You just need to learn to tolerate the pain more. I'm guessing you're not used to pain?" Weiss frowned. "It depends on your definition of pain." She was used to the pain from vicious beatings, sure. This wasn't that, though. This was different. She probably should have her aura fully activated and in resting state, but this world was peaceful. She didn't really need her aura here... Having it in resting state would prevent the cuts and nicks on her hands from working with the leather, but...part of her did just want to get used to it. Plus, she'd need less food if it was in resting state. She'd still need plenty, but not as much. Lilyana patted her head. "I guess handiwork pain in this case. You're clearly not used to it. You're here because you were abused in the human world, right?" Weiss nodded and looked down. "I felt like something was wrong if Ididn'tget beaten at least once a day..." She was never good enough for President Jacques. A 98% on an assignment was room for a beating. Basically anything that wasn't perfection was grounds for being beaten. She'd been thrown down marble stairs more than once. It really hurt even with her aura, but at least her arm had never gotten broken again. She was pretty sure he withheld beatings sometimesjustto make her more afraid of him. "Well, that won't happen here. Abuse like that isseverelyandharshlypunished. You're safe here. I promise. Anyway, come follow me." Weiss blinked but nodded and followed Lilyana into the house away from the workshop. She offered Weiss a stiff, well-made leather bag. "Here: your own falconry bag. Madam Kali told me you'd be starting formal lessons on the 30th of the month, so four more days. We can worry about things like lure training and such once we start there. But at least getting a jumpstart on some basic skills like leatherwork isn't bad. I'll have more time to work with you then." Lilayana smiled and Weiss returned it, though it was much shier. "Thank you." So that was when she'd be starting lessons... The 30th. Four more days until she got a normal schedule back and functioning again. She was glad. But four days felt like an eternity to be frank. She'd already been so loose with her time. But what else could she do about it? Not much. She was trying. She really was, but not having a consistent schedule waskillingher. "I'll teach you what everything in the bag is at a later date. I just made everything for you so that way you'd have it. Now go on and get up to the infirmary; you should get your hands healed up before breakfast." Weiss nodded and followed Sayaka's instructions up to the infirmary. The healer there looked a little annoyed and Weiss looked down. "Honestly, whatareyou doing?" "I'm learning leatherworking for falconry." She wasn't doing anything wrong... She wasn't sure why the woman was so angry. "I'm used to a soft life like Blake, not working with my hands." "I suppose you'll be coming up here everyday for a while, huh?" Weiss nodded and the woman gave a resigned sigh. "Very well..." With that done, Weiss dropped the bag off in her room, then made her way to the dining room where people were gathered. Breakfast was, once again, a turgid affair with Weiss listening to the fae talk inanely about religion and whatever else struck their fancy. She still wasn't educated enough in order to follow conversations. She didn't even know the names of the gods they were talking about. All she knew were Agat, the Holy Father, and Melan, the negative force in the world. She supposed Melan was Melanthios most likely, the god of death, or some incarnation of him. Blake had mentioned Agathon, the God of Order. Outside of that, she didn't know the first thing about gods or religion. She never paid any attention to religious services once a month when she went. After everyone broke, Weiss looked at Kali who blinked but nodded her head. "You wanted to ask me something, dearie?" "Lilyana mentioned you'd be setting up lessons for me to start in four days?" "We won't haveallof your teachers sorted out, but we have enough that you can start with lessons. Turi will handle your manners and we have a few others that can teach you. The main issue is finding a person well versed enough in Serlian history that's also willing to teach. Let's just say most scholars of human history are a bit...eccentric to put it politely." Weiss nodded a bit. Yeah, she could imagine that. Why study a planet full of warmongering mortals when it had little to no direct impact on Koiria? She could imagine it took a special brand of madness to want to study that. "But why wait?" She didn't quite understand that. "Well, you're going on an eagle hunting trip tomorrow. After that, you'll only have two days in the week. Why learn for only two days then have two days off?" Weiss frowned. "Wait... You expect me to not have lessons seven days a week?" She'd heard Blake mention the weekend but...it hadn't sunken in what that exactlymeantuntil now. Why take two days off? She didn't quite understand… Kali shook her head. "Oh dearie no, honey. Fae like their time to rest and relax and recharge after a tough week. Obviously, some people work seven days a week like serfs, but for the elite like us... Well. We need our rest. Working the land requires daily care, but for people with jobs in religion and such? We don't work that long. Five days a week at max." Weird. That felt so weird to her. She was used to having lessons ten hours a day, seven days a week. Her only breaks were for lunch and dinner, then sleep. Up at six, breakfast at six thirty, lessons at seven, then ended at six. There was an hour break for lunch in there, but even then, she usually continued her studies regardless. It was better than fighting with Whitley. "That's...so weird. I'm so used to having lessons ten hours a day, seven days a week. No break in there aside from the time that I would listen to the father in religious services..." That was once a month on Tuesdays for a couple hours. It was the worst part of her schedule. She could be unlucky and have sermons every week like some of the other Atlassian women, but she was lucky and didn't have to deal with that at least... Some Atlassians wereveryreligious. She hadn't had much exposure to religion aside from those services and some coming-of-age rituals. President Jacques didn't seem too religious but he imposed his will on her and she had nothing to do but capitulate. "Well, not here, honey. You'll have to deal with lessons, yes, but it's stuff that interests you mostly. Blake still has magic classes and such, but since she's pretty well-versed and manners, she has mostly religious-focused classes. She hopes she'll hear the call of the gods one day." Kali smiled. "What if she doesn't?" It seemed like an awful lot of hope to put stock in hoping to hear a 'call' of some sort… "There are plenty of other things she can do related to religion that will put her knowledge to use. So even if she doesn't become a religious leader, she'll still be able to do something related to her specialty." Kali continued to smile. Well, that was definitely good... Weiss was disappointed she personally wouldn't be able to put her own specialised knowledge to use... She loved working with dust, but they simply didn't have it or use it here. It was incredibly frustrating and disappointing, but she couldn't do anything about it. She just needed to take up magic and break into some sort of scientific field. "So how are those meetings going...?" Kali had said something about setting up meetings for her to talk to people in the relevant scientific fields for her. Yes, it had only been yesterday, but maybe they'd made some progress. Kali nodded. "You can meet with a few specialists on the 28th for general gem creation, but it'll take longer for the scientific chemical creation... Those people aren't the easiest to get a hold of. If you can hold on, we will get in touch with them. Gem creators are just easier since they're in almost every city. But people who create chemicals for science? They tend to be more isolated and fewer in number." Weiss nodded. "Okay, thank you." "Do you have any more questions?" Weiss shook her head. That about covered the basics of what she wanted to know. Though... Now the question was what to do with her day. She could go read which was the most tempting option since she still loved books. But part of her also wanted to be outside... It was hot and sticky, sure, but she was getting used to it kinda. The clothes kept her cool which was nice… She bowed her head to excuse herself then went back to her room. She wasn't really sure what to do. She wouldn't spend the whole day outside but maybe she could spend some time with Neige... She was glad to be able to spend more time with him when she wanted. She dug through her closet and found some riding clothes, then changed, and headed downstairs and out to the stable. A dog caught her attention and tilted its head."Where are you going?" "I'm looking for Neige, the new white horse that arrived a little while ago." She still didn't understand why there weren't any paddocks or anything like that, at least for the normal horses. She'd seen the inside of the barn and there weren't any doors on the stalls. It was strange to her... Of course, Neige was weirded out too. But, for right now, she wouldn't question it. “Oh, the one that speaks funny."The dog turned around and nodded to Weiss to follow. She did so and was eventually brought to her horse. She wrapped her arms around his neck and petted him. He chuffed at her and she smiled, smelling the scent of flowers, air, and freshness on him. "Hey boy," she muttered. She was glad she'd start to be able to ride him pretty much everyday now... She would still need lessons on gaits above a trot though. She wasn't sure how to ride at a gallop. When she'd made her terrible escape, she'd just sat the gallop and canter even though she knew that wasn't correct especially if astride. She knew about posting, but that was about it. "Hey, Weiss."His voice was soft and relaxed and he gleamed like a star in the daylight. It was bright and his coat shone warmly. "I can see they're taking pretty good care of you, huh?" Nobody would deny the care he had. He hadn't dropped any weight in the time she'd seen him here. If anything, he looked a bit more filled out. No, about a week wasn't a lot of time, but for aura users, animal or human, weight fluctuations came quickly and drastically. It was usually hard to put weight on but very easy toloseweight. She knew she was unhealthily short and light, but she was starting to feel full at every meal here. Her portions were like three times larger than anybody else's at the table but she definitely needed it... She wouldn't be able to grow any further at this point… Neige nodded. "Yeah. The grain here is so much better than what even Schnee manor provided. It feels so much fresher and warmer than the stuff I was given in Atlas. Probably because it hasn't been ultra processed is my guess."That would make sense... Weiss was used to fresh ingredients in her food, but she knew most people ate ultra-processed foods since they were cheaper and easier to get ahold of in Atlas... She would get sick if she tried to eat anything like that most likely, though. Thankfully, everything here was fresh grown and not ultra processed. "You look like you've put on some weight." "You do too. Not a lot but some."He lipped at her sleeve and she smiled a bit. Blake had mentioned something about clothes adjusting to people's sizes if she remembered correctly, or maybe she was wrong. A lot had happened in the time she'd been here even if it hadn't been that long. It was hard to remember everything she'd been told. "Hopefully I have. I was practically being starved back home." Though it never really felt like home. She never felt comfortable, content, and safe there. She was still adjusting to life here but...she felt alotbetter than she ever had in Schnee manor. She was still afraid to speak up and ask questions, but people didn't seem annoyed whenever she asked them. Well. Unless it was outright offensive to fae culture which...she was trying to avoid. She wasn'ttryingto be ignorant or offensive. She just had a very, very small world, and she was seeing it now. "I got some pretty good grain but the stuff here is just so much better. Though...would you like to ride?"He shook his mane out a bit and she smiled and nodded. "Just remember to not go in the forest... You'll get lost and Blake will have to come retrieve me. Or somebody else will." However, it looked like there was plenty of wide-open space here that they could ride around on. She hadn't seen the full extent of the property. She wasn't planning on being out all day, but an hour or two wouldn't hurt. "Will you be able to find your way back as long as we stay in the open areas?" "SHould be able to. The scent of pegasus is strong."He snorted, apparently not too happy about it. She nodded a bit and led him into the barn and a random stall. None of them were labeled. She found the saddle she'd used before and managed to get him all tacked up, then mounted at the mounting block. He was so tall compared to her that she really needed a leg up. It was even more annoying in side saddle and riding habit... She had to be careful not to flash everyone around her and not reveal her legs for fear of impropriety… After all of that was done, Weiss reined him around and started to walk him. Sayaka remained perched squarely on her shoulder and she smiled a bit. The little starling was absolutely adorable. She was becoming fond of the having the bird hanging around with her at most times. She would definitely be lost without her. She really did like having someone with her at all times like this... Not in the creepy way where she couldn't be unsupervised at most times, just in a connected sorta way... It felt really nice. Like she had an actual friend in the world. She rode around with Neige for a bit, mostly just sitting trots and walking him. She could probably galloped if she wanted to, but it felt so wrong... She'd been told all her life anything above a trot was improper for a lady and, well... She couldn't shake it quite so soon. Plus, all she could think of was her harrowing flight to attempt to get away from her betrothed. At least she didn't have to worry about that a nymore either... She really wondered how Auria was faring. It was obvious the fae wouldn't put up with Atlas' abusive environment. What she'd done, Weiss had no idea. Eventually, Weiss returned Neige to the barn and untacked him, and started leave until a dog tilted his head."Aren't you going to brush him down? He gave you a ride; it's the least you can do for him."Weiss...hadn't been expecting this. She tensed a little bit. "I...don't know how to do that." The dog turned around and motioned for Weiss to follow. He led her to a room with rows and rows of boxes on them and she found one labeled with Neige's name. He led her back out to the stall, then explained what brushes to use in what order. She nodded and started rubbing Neige down. The horse seemed relatively content with how he stood there and flicked his tail. Once she was done with that, she let him go and returned to her room where she changed back into her outfit from earlier. She wasn't really sure what to do now...