By the third day of running the chores groups, Nium had about decided to curse Lery out the next time he saw her. Quarion was a solid worker, but Marrisha was afraid of him (for no reason he could fathom), and Shemov was just a nightmare on two legs. The man wanted nothing to do with anyone else in the Weyr, and certainly didn't want to share duties; he was selfish, and on top of that, he was contemptuous of everyone else. The only thing he had going for him was the fact that he was physically stronger than most everyone else Nium knew, outside of the dragonriders. Nium was at his wit's end, he didn't know how to get the man to do anything except sulk. He'd finally gotten Shemov to wash the big equipment, especially the heavy pots and the ovens; the ovens needed cleaned regularly...not daily, but since he couldn't get Shemov to do anything else, they were getting cleaned every other day (he had Shemov clean half of them each day).

And if Nium frightened Marrisha, Shemov terrified her. He'd had to keep them separated. Marrisha had seemed, originally, to be good for helping out in the Cafeteria bussing the tables, but the number of people she bumped into rendered her a trembling statue within twenty minutes of service. Nium figured out that she did alright restocking the buffet, because she could keep the tables between her and other people, and set her to doing that.

Quarion, meanwhile, bounced from task to task as needed, and was a small speck of sanity in the group. Mostly, he bussed the tables and helped Marrisha carry fresh food out to the buffet.

Nium wondered when he would get his fourth person. Lery had promised him someone extremely skilled, but that she wouldn't arrive for a few days. Finally, the third morning, a fourth person showed up at 5am. Actually, she showed up just after 4am, seeming quite alert for that hour, and although Nium didn't recognize her, she was staying out of the way, so he ignored her; he did notice that she was watching everything and seemed to know her way around a kitchen. He didn't realize she was the fourth person until 5am rolled around and he met the other three. She seemed a little timid when she joined the group, but it didn't appear to be a lack of confidence, more that she didn't know any of them and she was watching for where to fit in.

"You must be..." he hesitated, trying to remember the name Lery had told him.

"Alyena. Lery told me to report here at 5am." She held out a hand, and he shook it, which he'd been told was the custom nowadays.

"Right, Alyena. Well, these are Shemov, Quarion, and Marrisha." The new girl bobbed her head in greeting. "Shemov--"

"Yeh, yeh, I's get started on th' ov'ns," Shemov snapped irritably, shoving past Nium and Alyena roughly and Nium growled a warning at him that he ignored. Nium glared after him, but he'd given up trying to discipline the man. He did notice Alyena's disapproving stare.

The Steward cleared his throat. "Ahem. Well, Marrisha usually helps keep the buffet table in the Cafeteria stocked, and Quarion helps her with that and busses tables, and whatever other odds and ends come up. Lery mentioned you know your way around a kitchen, Alyena?" After he mentioned their jobs, the other two skirted around him and Alyena and started doing just that.

Alyena shrugged diffidently. "Yes, I was Assistant Steward at Fort Hold, and I'm in my last year of Journeymanship."

Nium breathed a sigh of relief. "In that case, I'm going to give you free rein to help out in the Kitchens however you see fit. The chores period is 4 hours, from 5am until 9am, with a 10-minute break at the end of the 5, 6, and 7 o'clock hours. Depending on your preferences, you can eat before or after, or snatch something to eat during your breaks." With that, he hustled back into the Kitchens to oversee the other workers who were making breakfast dishes for the Weyrfolk.

Alyena was still adjusting to the time difference, and she was awake at 3am local time.  The only reason she wasn't awake sooner was because of the herbal sleep aids Master Healer Tikal had given her.  She could have taken another dose, but then she would probably have missed her first day of chores, and she wasn't keen on doing that.  So she took a hot bath -- there was no one else in the bathing rooms this early -- and made her way down to the Infirmary, thinking maybe Master Tikal would already be awake; as it turned out, he was.  He did the therapy, or whatever it was, on her elbow, and she made her way back to her quarters and changed into a shirt with tighter sleeves.  She quickly grew bored sitting in her room, with nothing to do, so she headed for the Great Hall.

She arrived as the clock tinkled a quiet tune, followed by four hollow tones that signaled the hour.  There were a few people at the tables, most of them looking at pieces of paper while nursing mugs of something to drink, a few had platters of food.  The buffet tables had a relatively small number of food selections compared to the other times that she had been in the Cafeteria.  Alyena wandered down to the section with beverages and debated between klah and juice, finally settling on a mug of klah, at least to start with.  She actually emptied the thermos, so she scooped up her cup -- only a little over half full -- and the empty thermos and headed for the Kitchens.  After a cautious glance through the doors and determining that no one was about to run her over, she slipped inside.  It didn't take her long to spot a kettle heating up on one of the stoves, and a quick whiff confirmed it was klah.  There was a fresh thermos sitting next to the stove, so rather than refilling the empty one she'd brought in, she filled the fresh one and put the cap on it, topping off her mug with the dregs of the kettle.  She spotted a water jug nearby by a canister of ground klah and she refilled the kettle and put it back on the stove.

She hesitated and peered around the room; although it was dwarfed by the Great Hall and even the Cafeteria, it was still far larger than the Kitchens at Fort and Benden Holds.  Finally she spotted what looked to be the dirty dishes return next to a drudge bringing in an empty tray.  The drudge paused by a bucket and carefully swept the crumbs from the platter into the bucket before sliding the board into a sink and walking away.  Alyena gazed farther around the Kitchen and noticed that there was a similar setup near each entry from the Great Hall as well as the one into the Cafeteria.  The sinks were relatively small affairs, certainly not large enough to wash all of the dishes that would be passing through during a major event, not to mention the huge pots and the planks on which whole-roasted animals would be served, so she decided there must be larger sinks somewhere else where the main washing was done.  However, her immediate concern was addressed, and she scurried over to the sink near the Cafeteria door and plunked the thermos down into the sink before collecting her mug and the fresh pot of klah and returning to the Cafeteria.

She quickly grew bored with the activity -- or lack thereof -- in the Cafeteria and decided to explore the Kitchens further.  Nursing her cup of klah, she ambled back into the Kitchens, careful to stick to corners and empty spaces, the better to stay out of the way of the people who were already at work.  It took her a bit to decide that there were about the same number of people in the Kitchens here as there would be at Fort Hold at this hour, but it seemed like far fewer because of how spread out they were.  Although they were all concentrated in the section nearest the Cafeteria doorway, every person had a significant amount of workspace between themselves and their neighbors.  It was a delight to Alyena's eye.

She made her way around the Kitchens, observing that the largest ovens for roasting whole herdbeasts were located in the largest concave area, farthest from the Cafeteria entrance. Those were cold, clearly not in use for now.  That space also primarily seemed to be storage...or maybe a repair room?  Several freestanding ovens were piled in a corner, along with raw lumber and a few crates of supplies in assorted conditions...but mostly poor condition.  The middle area was full of divided, large boxes, stacked along the walls and in banks with aisles between them; the top division was smaller than the lower.  Alyena peeked inside one and discovered that they were ice boxes: the upper compartment was filled with snow and ice, and natural convection circulation of the air in the lower compartment pushed the air through tubes that were layered in the ice, pushing cold air back down into the lower compartment where it kept the contents chilled.  A few of the free-standing boxes opened from the top instead of the front, and these turned out to be chest freezers, where items -- mostly meats -- were packed with blocks of ice to be kept frozen, or nearly frozen.  Alyena stood next to the wall between the two smaller alcoves and watched the way what she was coming to think of as the main kitchen run.  Most of the activity took place to the right side of the Cafeteria door, from her vantage point; the ovens were placed along the natural wall that had been smoothed out, allowing the heat to radiate into the stone behind them, leaching the excess heat from the Kitchens while not allowing the room to get too cool.

Two people were sorting, washing, and slicing fruits and vegetables, dropping anything that was too badly damaged to eat in a bucket, while the rinds and pieces that were too small for the trays were put in a cauldron with water; after a bit of thought, Alyena decided those were being used to make vegetable stock.  Most of the sliced produce was heaped semi-artistically on serving platters, but some were dropped in bowls of water, including peppers, onions, fungoids, and...were those olives?!  She could hardly believe her eyes.  They rarely saw olives in Fort Hold, and when they did, they graced the Lord Holder's table and no one else's.  A third person periodically joined that table and used a press to squeeze different fruits for juice that went into glass carafes; sometimes, they mixed some of the juices together.  Now she knew what the juices were that she had seen the previous day: redfruit juice, apple juice, lemon-lime juice, grapefruit juice, and even some grape juice.  It looked like the berries were reserved for baking, or for fresh eating.

Another pair of people at a second table mixed, kneaded, and prepared breads and, to the young baker's delight, pastries.  They were also making bowls of a thin batter that was being sent over to one of the stoves.  Most of the mixes appeared to be breads that were poured into loaf pans.  However, there were some sticky mixes with bits of dried fruit and candied sweetening chips that were being dolloped by the spoonful onto flat baking trays, as well as some doughs that were rolled out flat, had jams or jellies and nuts sprinkled onto them, were rolled up in a spiral, and sliced onto the same flat trays.  Some of those doughs were rolled flat without any fillings, cut into triangles, and rolled into crescent shapes, while others were cut into squares or rectangles and baked flat.

At a table to one side of a -- was that a wood-fired stove? -- one person cracked wherry eggs into a bowl, whisked them together, and scrambled them in pans on the stove; some were being mixed with vegetables (from the bowls prepared by the first pair), some with ground or cubed meat that was being prepared by a second person on the other side of the stove.  That person was also making a large pan of sausage gravy.  The first person occasionally pulled a pan out of the oven and put another one in; those pans had some milk mixed in with the eggs, veggies, and meats, with cheese sprinkled on top.  The second person would pull small roasts out and either slice or dice them, depending on what was needed.

A second stove had a griddle plate, on which someone made flatcakes and alternatively swapped trays of baked items out of the oven below.  The doughs and batters came from the baking table.  On the other side of the stove was a pot of porridge. Next to that stove, another person pulled the items from their pans and set them on racks to cool, shifting the racks along the table, so the freshest items were closest to the oven; he sliced the cooled items at the far end, layering them on serving platters.  He also intermittently poured finished porridge from the pot into a serving bowl, and sliced cheeses onto a serving plate.

The stove just to the side of the Cafeteria entryway was where Alyena had found the kettle of klah.  There was also a kettle steeping plain black tea, and two kettles heating water.  While she watched, someone poured some of the hot water over a mesh ball of something that turned the water reddish, maybe an herbal tea of some sort?  And over another mesh ball of what was probably green tea.

On the opposite side of the Kitchens, on the wall that had been built from quarried stone, were the sinks.  One pair of drudges circulated in and out of the Kitchens and the Cafeteria, taking the prepared items out to the buffet and, as often as not, returning with emptied trays that went into the sink by the door.  A second pair of drudges pulled the pre-soaked dishes out of that sink and bussed them on a cart to a larger triple sink, where they set to scrubbing the bits of food from them, then dunked them in the middle sink, where they sat for a minute or two before being rinsed in the third sink.  Alyena caught the scent of an antiseptic when they lifted several items out of the center sink, causing the water to splash and aerating it.  She wrinkled her nose at the odor, but approved.  At Fort, they only sanitized the dishes once a week, unless they were being used for someone who was ill, and while it hadn't caused any problems that she was aware of, they were also only feeding about 5% of the population size.  And the Weyr was heading into winter, not summer -- the time of illness in most places.

By now, she had finished her klah, and was starting to feel a bit peckish.  She peered out into the Great Hall, spotting the clock.  It was 4:30am, still plenty of time before she was supposed to report to Nium.  She wasn't sure who he was, but she suspected he was the person handling the finished baked goods.  She ducked out into the Great Hall to navigate back to the Cafeteria without disrupting the patterns of foot traffic in the Kitchens.  Stopping at the end of the buffet, she selected a tray and picked up two plates and bowls.  Lery had brooked no arguments over the fact that everyone was to eat however much they needed to fill up, and had firmly told Alyena that she was to follow Tikal's orders to eat healthy portions.  On one plate, she slid a slice of frittata and a couple slices of wherry.  The second plate was heaped with flatcakes that she buttered and poured a thick berry syrup over top of.  One bowl was filled with porridge and topped with a dollop of butter and some dried fruit; the other she loaded with wedges of fruit, vegetables, cheeses, and crackers.  She set the tray down next to the beverages and filled two glasses, one with ice-water and one with apple juice.  Then she took a seat at a nearby table and dug in.

After washing down the last of her breakfast with the water (which was still cold, but no longer cold enough to make her teeth ache), she collected her dishes and started to take them into the Kitchens.  One of the people who were in charge of bussing the tables intercepted her and took the dishes from her with a sniff that indicated she didn't trust anyone who wasn't working in the Kitchens to clean up after themselves.  Alyena pursed her lips, partly in annoyance, but mostly to hide her desire to laugh; she certainly understood, so many of the people at Fort Hold who had never been in the Kitchens could easily mess up the entire flow, and she let the woman take the dishes.  She watched, to make sure she knew what the process was here.  She wasn't sure what the bucket of waste was being held for, it wasn't like the wastes were being separated.

Then she heard the start of the chime that indicated the top of the hour, and she stepped over to the area where she'd been told to meet Nium.  There were two men older than she was, and a girl who looked to be younger.  A moment later, the man Alyena had watched slicing breads and cheeses came out, wiping his hands on his apron.  Alyena was furious at the way the one man, Shemov, treated her and Nium, and she could see that the Steward had lost patience with him; it was obvious the man terrified the other girl, as well.  Quarion seemed a stolid sort, the kind that could be trusted to do pretty much anything, and aside from her obvious anxiety, so did Marrisha.  Shemov, on the other hand...  Alyena stepped into the Kitchens and watched as the man swept the ash out of the ovens that were not being used yet and scrubbed down the interiors and the stovetop surfaces.  It was clear he was angry and hated being here.  After chewing on her lip for a couple of minutes, she sought out Nium and asked what the story was.

"He's holdless, the dragonriders found him here up on the top of that spire that they're turning into a Watchtower.  He's extremely antisocial, seems to think he's better than everyone else, and told Headwoman Lery to her face that he doesn't want to be a dragonrider.  He's practically spit on the riders, although I guess he likes the dragons well enough.  If you have any ideas, I'm open to hearing them."

Alyena pursed her lips, thinking.  She absently rubbed her injured elbow; it was aching just a bit after Master Tikal's ministrations.  She was accustomed to being thought weak and inferior because of the injury, which was one reason she was self-conscious about it and typically wore long-sleeved shirts that covered most of the scars.  When it first happened, she hadn't thought anything of it.  By the time she was old enough to be affected by insecurity about her injury, she had learned how to work around it, but it didn't stop others from having a first impression of her being uselessly disabled.  "I know this might be overstepping a bit, sir," she started hesitantly.  She had been an Assistant Steward at Fort, so just a step below Nium's position.  "If you don't mind if I try something...I don't know if it'll work..."  She rolled her sleeve up to show the Steward the scar.

Nium's eyebrows nearly disappeared in his hairline.  He would never have guessed she was sporting such an injury.  She had told him what her previous rank was, so he knew she was capable.  He studied her a little more closely.  Finally, he nodded.  "As long as it's nothing reckless," he authorized her.

Alyena smiled faintly and shook her head, then told him what she had in mind.  Having obtained tacit permission, she rolled both sleeves up, fully exposing the scar on her arm.  She shivered a little, despite the warmth of the Kitchens, and took a deep breath to remind herself that there was nothing to be afraid of.  Then she went over to the oven to Shemov's left, which hadn't been cleaned yet, and set to.  It took the man a minute to realize he was no longer alone in his task.  Her scar was fully visible to him, as was the ways that she had to compensate for it.  Sweeping the ashes wasn't too difficult for her, except for scooping them up out of the oven and pouring them in the ash can: a normal person would hold the dust pan with one hand and sweep ashes into it with their dominant hand, but she couldn't fully extend her dominant hand, so she wedged the pan into the corner of the oven and swept into it with her off hand.  Then she used her off hand to lift the filled pan and dump the contents into the bin.  Instead of 3-4 scoops, it took her half a dozen.

After she finished removing the ashes, Alyena moved the can to the next oven and retrieved one of the abrasive metal scrubbers and started in on the creosote and grease buildup inside the oven.  Again, she was using her off hand, while she used her dominant hand to maintain her balance as she crouched in front of the oven.  She saw, out of the corner of her eye, that Shemov was watching her disdainfully; she ignored him, focusing on doing the work without showing any hint of weakness -- she wanted to show that she was able to fully compensate for the injury.  Although it did take her longer than it would take someone else familiar with the work, she was still faster than Shemov.  Standing up, she switched for a clean scrubber and started on the flat range top, and then swapped the scrubber for a clean rag and wiped down the inside and outside of the oven, removing all the residue she had loosened with the scrubbers.

Only then did she deign to make eye contact with Shemov.  He was still scrubbing the top surface of "his" oven.  Alyena straightened up and arched her back, stretching out the muscles and massaging her arm, making it seem like an unconscious gesture.  Nium saw she was done and came over to inspect the oven, loudly complimenting her for her fastidiousness.  "Now that's how you clean an oven!  You should take notes, Shemov."  Shemov's eyes narrowed angrily and Alyena raised an eyebrow in silent challenge.  Then she waited until he finished the oven he was working on, and picked up her ash bin, the two scrubbers, and another clean rag and moved to the next oven while he did the same, and it became a race to see which of them could produce a suitably-cleaned oven the fastest.  Once again, Shemov was started before Alyena because it took her longer to move her materials one-handed.  This time, he proclaimed his oven finished before she finished hers -- but Nium pointed out a layer of creosote buildup at the back of the oven that he had missed, as well as a splotch of burned-on food residue on the stove surface.  Alyena finished and passed inspection before he finished cleaning up those spots.

By this point, it was time for their first 10-minute break, and all of the ovens to be cleaned that day were cleaned to Nium's satisfaction.  Alyena meticulously cleaned the grease and soot off her hands and from under her fingernails, then poured herself a large glass of fruit juice to drink while sitting in a corner of the Kitchen where the ends and pieces of dishes were placed to be snacked on by anyone who happened through in search of something to eat.  She nibbled on a small wedge of cheese.  Marrisha wedged herself back in the corner where she could watch everyone else; Quarion plopped down on a stool next to Alyena; and Shemov snatched a slice of bread, slathered it with butter, and poured himself a mug of klah and stood off to the side, where he watched Alyena suspiciously.

At the end of their break, the older man slouched over to the sinks and started washing the two large pots that were soaking.  Alyena considered continuing to "duel" with him, but decided that for two pots, it wasn't worth the effort.  Instead, she noted that the Cafeteria was starting to fill up with more people coming in for breakfast and decided on a new challenge for the sullen fellow Candidate: a little baking.  She murmured a question to Nium and got permission to make a little something extra for the breakfast tables: cheese bread, made in muffin tins so that each "loaf" was the perfect size for a single serving.  She moved to an unoccupied table -- with a clear line of sight from the sinks -- and got a mixing bowl, a whisk, a spatula, and half a dozen muffin tins, along with flour, eggs, butter, milk, salt, and some crumbly farmer cheese.  Holding the tins with her right hand, she used her left to smear a bit of butter around the inside of each muffin well, then set the tins aside.  She pulled the mixing bowl over and put the eggs, butter, and milk in it; again, holding it with her right hand, she whisked the wet ingredients together until smooth.  Then she sifted flour into the mix and beat it.  She dragged the tins back over and crumbled bits of cheese into each well, then filled the wells with the batter from the mixing bowl.  Throughout, she made sure that it was clear how she compensated for her damaged arm.  Finally, she lifted a tin and balanced it on her right arm, and picked up a second tin and took it to the oven being used to bake goods.  Nium saw her coming and opened the oven door when she got there, pulling out a couple trays of cookies to make room for her two tins.  All told, it took her about 15 minutes to prepare the mini loaves.  She stacked the four remaining tins at the end of the table, waiting to be taken to the oven when the current pair were finished.  She took the mixing bowl and utensils over to the sinks, where she handed them to Shemov with a jaundiced eye.  He glared back at her, but there was uncertainty behind the animosity.

Shouts rose from out in the Great Hall, and she took a moment to step out to see what was going on, noticing Nium rolling his eyes as she did so.  She jumped back out of the way and gaped as a group of about 20 people, one whom she recognized as T'lon, charged by at a fast jog, or slow run depending on your point of view.  They raced through the Great Hall and out the main entrance, dodging around H'lee who was going in the opposite direction at a more sedate pace.  He paused next to her as his path brought him past the Kitchens.  "How are you settling in, Alyena?" he asked genially.

"Uh, fine.  What--?" she gestured.

The brownrider grinned.  "Our morning exercise routine.  I can't do the full five-mile loop because of my leg, so I do what I can and meet the rest of them in the bathing chambers."

"Five miles?" she squeaked, blanching.  She heard a contemptuous snort behind her and knew, without turning, that it was Shemov.  Well, there was something else she could prod him on.  She narrowed her eyes and smiled ever so slightly, knowing that the man couldn't see her face.

H'lee chuckled.  "Yes.  And if you Impress, you'll be expected to reach that!  Of course, we know most of you won't be able to do the full five miles at first.  We aren't going to make you run that far, but you'll be running every day after Impression."  He saw her speculative expression and wondered what that was about.  Well, he'd mention it to Lery and let her deal with whatever it was.  He waved and resumed his walk out of the Great Hall and toward the bathing rooms.

Alyena wasn't sure exactly how to leverage her newly-gained knowledge, but she had a while to think about it.  She turned back into the Kitchen and considered her next move.  Quarion was just bringing in a stack of dishes, and Marrisha was edging back out the door with a couple trays of food.  Alyena peered out into the Cafeteria and saw there were quite a few dirty dishes piled on tables.  She knew the Riders hadn't yet been in to eat, so they would have to be showing up before too long.  Frowning, she looked around the Kitchens and the Cafeteria and didn't see what she was looking for...but she knew she'd seen it somewhere.  She headed for the farthest chamber and rummaged around in the piles of equipment until she found it: a wheeled cart with three shelves.  It had crates of kitchen tools on it which she shifted off onto other stacks, and worked the cart out of the room.  Moving it into the near end of the Kitchens, she snagged a dishcloth and wiped the cart down, then obtained six of the plastic tubs that would fit in pairs on the shelves.  Stopping at the sinks -- next to Shemov -- she filled the four tubs on the bottom and middle shelves with hot water and a bit of soap.  She also got a small pail and filled it with soap water, and grabbed a handful of cloth rags.

Then Alyena wheeled the cart out into the Cafeteria and started at the farthest emptied table: napkins went in the tub next to the pail of soapy water, and the carrying trays for dishes went in the other empty tub.  The tubs of water were divided among plates, bowls, cups and glasses, and silverware.  After clearing the table, she took one of the clean rags, dipped it in the pail of water and rung it out, then wiped down the table.  She moved on to the next table and repeated the process.  In the time it took Quarion to clear two tables and carry the dishes, stacked on carrying trays, to the Kitchens, she was able to clear almost a dozen tables, and still had room enough in the tubs for that many more tables.  Quarion didn't waste any time figuring out that her method was more efficient, and he joined her.  Together, they cleared the remaining tables.

After clearing the tables, they took the tubs off the cart and set them next to the sinks for Shemov to wash.  Alyena made sure she lifted at least one of the filled tubs off the cart and onto the counter next to the sinks.  It hurt to do so, but it was worth it to see the look on Shemov's face.  Then, after wiping the cart down again, she loaded it with cleaned, dry dishes and silverware, which she rolled out and used to restock the table at the end of the buffet.  Then it was time for their second break.  The four of them gathered at the side table again; the other three dug into the food with more enthusiasm than they had earlier, so Alyena stayed to one side and out of the way after snagging a wedge of fruit.  After they'd taken the edge off, she spoke up.  "So, a five mile run, huh?  They do that every day?"  Marrisha and Quarion confirmed it, while Shemov sneered.  "Any of you try doing it with them?"

Marrisha paled and shook her head vigorously.  Quarion shrugged.  "I had enough to do with my routine before getting Searched and having everything changed up for this.  Haven't thought about much else the last couple of days."

Alyena looked at the other member of their group.  "How about you, Shemov?"  The man snorted derisively.  "I take it that's a no?"

"I dun need ta.  I cud outrun any o' t'em any day, na t' menshun any o' ye," he scoffed.  "Ye pro'y c'nt e'en walk fr'm 'ere t' th' entrance 'n' back wi'out c'lapsin' arfter."  There was a challenge in his voice.

Alyena smiled viciously.  Finally got a rise out of him.  "Oh, I don't know about that," she replied airily.  "It was my responsibility to go to the markets at Fort Hold every week to buy supplies.  It was almost a mile each way, plus going through the markets themselves."  Okay, she didn't run when she was doing any of that, but she walked briskly except when she took the wagon, and even then, she parked the wagon at the edge of the market until she'd made her purchases.  "Next break, let's see who can make it to the main entrance and back before break's over!"  She included Marrisha and Quarion in the dare.  She saw a flicker of something in Marrisha's eyes that wasn't fear, which was an improvement over everything else she'd observed in the girl's countenance.  Quarion shrugged amiably.  Alyena met Shemov's eyes squarely, seeing the disdain in his gaze.  "Well?"

"Bah, fine," he snapped and headed back to the sinks.  Quarion quaffed the rest of his mug of klah and went to the cart, starting to load up the tubs and refill them with soapy water.

Alyena looked at Marrisha.  "Think we can beat him?" she asked the other girl.

Marrisha looked nervous, but she smiled weakly.  "I ran my pa's goatherds, and we could put on several miles a day.  Not running, but..."

Alyena grinned.  "Let's put the big man in his place, then!"

She went to Nium and told him what was going on.  He frowned a bit.  "Well, I shouldn't let you do it during break, but you have your lesson right after your chores are up.  And anything that might get him to be more cooperative..."  He sighed.  "Alright, I won't ding any of you for not being back at the top of the hour."  Alyena smiled and thanked him.

There was a great deal more noise out in the Cafeteria than there had been at any other time so far.  Alyena realized she wasn't surprised when she joined Quarion and found that the ruckus was from the dragonriders, who were demolishing the clean dishes and food supplies on the buffet tables.  Marrisha was shaking and flinched whenever someone's voice rose above the others.  Alyena left the cart with Quarion -- there weren't many dirty dishes to collect yet anyway -- and instead went to help Marrisha.  She had, at first, thought the fear was just a general discomfort of being around other people, and the dragonriders were certainly a boisterous bunch that could set any shy person's teeth on edge, but the more she watched, the more she realized it was men, specifically.  Well, she couldn't solve that problem today, but at least she could alleviate some of the girl's fear by siding with her for the next hour.  "How about you and I take these empties back into the Kitchens, and you start putting together some fresh thermoses while I bring out whatever's already ready?" she said softly, starting to gather up the empty or mostly-empty serving platters on the table.  She gathered up the empty thermoses, which were closest to the noisy group of Riders, and shooed Marrisha back into the Kitchens ahead of her.

Although it didn't look like Marrisha relaxed much once she was back in the Kitchens, at least the shaking stopped as she forced herself to hold the pots of beverages steady while she poured.  In the time it took her to fill thermoses and start the next batches brewing, Alyena had replaced most of the food platters that they had taken in, but there was another round of platters to be replaced.  By the time the two girls swapped those out and restocked the tableware, half of their time between breaks had passed.  A lot of other people their age were in the Cafeteria now, most watching the Riders avidly, some getting up the nerve to approach the group and ask questions.  Alyena saw H'lee's and Lery's son, Lerane, among the Riders, though he sat at the edge and seemed to be more approachable than the Riders; several of the younger folks were clustered near him, and it appeared he was answering questions and telling stories.

Alyena guided Marrisha back into the Kitchens. There were plenty of dishes to be washed, which Shemov was working on. Alyena doubted Marrisha would be able to help with that, not the way she flinched every time Shemov did or said anything. After scanning the Kitchens, Alyena suggested that Marrisha restock the tables where the other staff were cutting vegetables and fruit, and bring another bag of flour for the bakers. Meanwhile, she settled in at the sinks, helping Shemov with the dishes and earning another glare from the older man. When the quarter-til chime sounded, the four Candidates made efforts to wrap up the tasks they were working on.

Nium looked on, somewhat amused by the impromptu competition, and wondering what the outcome was going to be. He knew that it would be nearly a full mile across the Great Hall and back; he figured Shemov would have the stamina to do it, after all, it was reputed that the man had free-climbed the tower, but he wasn't sure about the other three. Well, they'd see, he decided. He did, however, slip out and whisper to H'lee.

Alyena and Shemov eye each other rivalrously as they dried their hands and joined Quarion and Marrisha at the far entrance to the Great Hall. When the clock read ten til the hour, the four bolted through the doorway. Shemov took off at a powerful lope, quickly outdistancing the two girls, although Quarion kept pace with him until they were about halfway across the chamber. After a short burst of running all out, Alyena and Marrisha settled into a brisk walk that, while not as fast as the two boys' strides, wouldn't leave them totally breathless in the first two minutes.

Shemov reached the entryway first, of course. He stopped, breathing hard. Quarion caught up with him about 30 seconds later, breathing harder, and stopped, putting his hands on his knees to catch his breath and garnering a disgusted look from the other man. Shemov started back a few seconds later, although slower than he had traveled on the way out. The girls caught up with Quarion and, while their breathing was accelerated, they were not out of breath and were, in fact, talking a little. They made a circuit around Quarion, who was still trying to catch his breath, and started back, about 30 seconds behind Shemov now. The older Candidate gained some ground on them as they made their way back across. Quarion started after them, but at a slower pace, and holding his side.

Shemov was three-quarters of the way back when the girls reached the halfway point and broke into a run. Neither of them were running flat out, but it was a faster pace than Shemov was maintaining by that point. The man was so confident that he didn't realize they'd picked up the pace until they were practically on top of him. He lost a few seconds' ground in surprise before he picked up his pace again. As they approached the doorway back into the Kitchens (at nearly the end of their 10-minute break), Marrisha took the lead, while Alyena and Shemov jockeyed for second place. Shemov nearly caught Marrisha, but she skidded into the Kitchens just a single stride ahead of the man; Alyena was two strides behind him. Quarion brought up the tail almost a minute after their break was nominally over and found the other three gulping water. Alyena was congratulating Marrisha on winning the race, simultaneously ribbing the taciturn Shemov for his bet. Quarion said nothing as he guzzled some water and tried to get his breath back.

After a few minutes of recovery, Shemov returned to washing dishes. It was clear that he was angry about having been beaten, and Nium was concerned that he would lash out at Alyena or Marrisha; however, the holdless man took out his frustration on the dishes instead. Marrisha and Alyena restocked the buffet table again while Quarion bussed tables. All three pitched in to help Shemov finish cleaning all of the existing dirty dishes, leaving the Kitchens nearly fully-stocked with clean tableware and cookware when their shift ended.