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 Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 9:05 am
So this was what she was going to have to do to have any free time at all as a Weyrling? So be it.
Lanakirene could not begrudge her dragon anything. It wasn't Isonth's fault that whenever she wasn't sleeping she was hungry, and whenever she wasn't hungry she was itchy. But the full-time care of a dragon, on top of the same chores she had done as a Candidate, to which was added Weyrling lessons and wing drills....it meant that she had no time to herself anymore. She was beginning to feel like she didn't exist as anything other than a set of opposable thumbs for Isonth.
She had taken to waking up early, before the sun even really got started rising, to give herself time to be alone and remember who Lanakirene was. She never went far or did anything odd, and she tried her hardest not to wake Isonth, but the alone time helped. Even if it meant losing more sleep than she was already losing, at least she got a chance to relax and be awake without being shouted at.
The horizon was just starting to turn rosy from her vantage point just outside the weyrling barracks, and La's single glow was quickly becoming irrelevant as the sky lightened. She was, at the moment, stringing together shells. She had found the little bag of pale gold and blue shells in her things; they had been purchased at the last Gather and completely forgotten about until La accidentally uncovered them. Each one had a little hole drilled in both ends, and La was knotting them into jewelry. The task was a strangely mundane one, and La had never been the type for jewelry, but it gave her hands something to do while she relaxed. It was nice.
Lanamine, why are you outside and not in here with me? The plaintive voice made La jump a little bit and grimace, but she recovered quickly and sighed. Come out and see me, Isonth. The sun is coming up, she answered, and when her dragonet loudly projected itchiness to her, she sighed again. Bring my bag with you.
All right, Lanamine. You are awake so early. I don't really understand. You make yourself tired.
It's just something I choose to do, La answered with a slight smile, grinning as Isonth came into view, holding her head high to keep the strap of La's small bag of oils and sands from slipping off her nose. Bring it here, love she said, laughing in her head and gladly accepting it when Isonth finally came close enough. Isonth huffed quietly and curled up beside her, resting her head in La's lap just carefully enough to not upset the bag of shells.
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Posted: Wed Apr 15, 2009 9:06 pm
Pfft… free time? What sort of silly idea was that? If a Weyrling was awake, he or she was looking after their dragon. If they weren’t looking after their dragon, they were asleep. Some eating occurred, but only if their dragon gently reminded them. At least, that was how it worked in C’ym’s case. Oh! And lessons too. Their first lesson of Preparing Meat had been embarrassing enough for C’ym. By now, he had the distinct feeling that S’kagi really was picking on him, but he couldn’t quite find the way to say it. There wasn’t any real proof and, besides, Hanmanth kept being so sharding cheery about it. Because Han wanted to be a Good Example. The way the words formed themselves inside of C’ym’s mind made it clear that the dragonet was speaking in capital letters.
That was dangerous thinking, in one so young. It was also that exact tendency that led Hanumanth to wake up his rider oh-so-early in the morning.
The first thing C’ym saw when he opened his own eyes was a pair of faceted eyes looking right back at him. This was not expected, since he slept alone. His response was to flail, which only startled Hanumanth into jumping off the shelf onto the ground and then stare at his in a decidedly mournful fashion.
“Shards, Han! What are you doing?” C’ym groaned, not even wanting to think about the hour. It was Too Sharding Early, that’s what time it was.
Han turned up the mourn in his stare. Perhaps he was up to two mournfuls now. I only wanted to see if you were awake, he said apologetically. And you are. So, come on. Wake up more! The day is already starting an… C’ym? Why did you make a funny noise and roll over? Are you sick?
The little dragon’s mental voice overran with concern, possibly sloshing it all over the neural pathways. Letting out a small mewl, he nosed his rider with his soft nose, wondering if he had done something wrong. Mine? You can’t go back to sleep now! You’re already awake! And… and there’s lots to do! And I wanna show Bondyeth that I’m just as good as him! I’m older anyway. And you’re older than His. So we’ve got to show them how to do things right!
There was a brief silence as Han waited for C’ym to spring out of bed, all full of energy and spirit. He was sorely disappointed when C’ym’s only reaction was to let out a theatrical snore. Also, I’m itchy.
Now that got C’ym’s attention. With a sigh, the Weyrling reluctantly got up and got dressed. “Fine… I don’t see why you’re so concerned about being a good example. No one else is awake. Who would notice us anyway?” Right. The oil… C’ym groped along the shelves in his half-asleep stupor until he found it and the bag of sands as well. Then it was into the outside world, because Hanumanth was always making noise; it wouldn’t do to wake up anyone else.
Except someone else was already awake. C’ym blinked blearily at La and Isonth several times, his mind not yet catching up with what he was actually seeing. Eventually, it did and realized that he was basically staring. “…morning?” Oh! Good one! That sounded like a good conversation-starter. He stifled another yawn and sat down, urging Han closer. “I didn’t think anyone else would be up yet.”
Han practically oozed with delight. Now he could be a Good Example! Except… since Isonth had already woken up, would that make her the example? He made another quiet noise and put his head on C’ym’s knee, trying to get some scratches.
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Posted: Fri Apr 17, 2009 8:08 am
It was too early for La to be chipper, even if she had already been awake for the better part of a candlemark, but she looked up when she heard another pair approaching and managed a somewhat weak smile. "Good morning," she said softly, setting the bag of shells and half-finished anklet aside when Isonth wormed her head even more into La's lap. Itchy little dragons were itchy now and there was no way to deny them what they wanted. Scratching Isonth's eye ridges as she unpacked the oil from the pack, she watched as C'ym sat down beside her. "...it's early, but Isonth was still asleep and I wanted to do a bit of my own work," she said softly, picking up the anklet to show C'ym what she had been working on. "It's hard to do it with a dragon in your lap."
Isonth hadn't moved from her position in La's lap, but the presence of another dragon had caught her interest, and her focus was definitely on Hanumanth. Hullo! she said brightly to him, radiating happiness at Hanumanth's presence straight into La's head. La shook her head and smiled in spite of herself as she set the anklet aside once more and got to work oiling the dry patches on Isonth's neck. It is before sunrise, does Yours like to wake himself at funny morning hours, too? Isonth went on. La grimaced slightly at the words and shook her head. Oh, Isonth.
She hadn't realized she had spoken in her thoughts until Isonth lifted her head to bump her muzzle gently against La's chest. Is something wrong, Lanamine? she asked, suddenly the picture of concern. La laughed quietly and shook her head, patting Isonth's neck and gently guiding her head back down into her lap.
No, dearest, nothing's wrong she answered. Now move so I can get to your shoulders better.
Isonth's gleeful response to the request was to stand up and flop herself right across La's lap, earning a startled 'oof!' from the girl. The action put her head that much closer to C'ym and Hanumanth, and she regarded them with bright interest, lifting her head to try and see C'ym eye-to-eye.
Lanakirene, you know this one, yes?
....Sort of. La occasionally helped Nan or Elae mock him in their typical good-natured way, but she wasn't sure if that counted or not. Either way, she had met the boy enough to know him reasonably well, though it wasn't as if they were friends.
Well, you should get to know him. He is a nice boy with a nice bronze, Isonth said decisively before laying her head back down again.
La shook her head and smiled sheepishly at C'ym. "What's got you up at this hour? Itchy dragon?" She nodded toward his oil. Generally, if someone was up at this hour, they weren't doing it on purpose. For the most part, they had itchy or hungry or Faranth-knew-what-else dragonets. Most Weyrlings didn't sacrifice more sleep for their own projects.
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Posted: Fri Apr 17, 2009 9:21 pm
C’ym gave the strung shells the usual attention that such men gave such objects. That is, as a man who didn’t want to get himself slapped any time soon, he gave it a polite look-over, despite the fact that he thought it was a rather silly thing to do at this hour. The sun was only just coming up and the holes were tiny; surely a person could go blind while trying to do something like that? He hadn’t asked what she was doing, of course, but it was nice to get an explanation.
“That’s very nice. When did you get time to go down to the shore? And how?” It seemed like a fair question. Shells came from the seashore. Occasionally picked up by girls named with peculiar S-names, if C’ym recalled correctly. Then again, it was very early in the morning, so it was possible he didn’t recall correctly.
Han, getting impatient with the talking but being far too polite to say anything about it, gave C’ym a meaningful nudge. C’ym obediently started to scratch the bronze’s shoulder, getting rid of the dried skin. “Hard to believe that, one day, we won’t be able to do this so easily. I think I’m getting nostalgic already.”
Good morning! Han said, with every bit as much cheer as Isonth. Well, maybe not as much… but, he was certainly happy that he wasn’t out here alone. Besides, he liked Isonth. By now, the memories of Hatching had completely faded from his memory, but he still felt certain that the Green was a nice one. Of course, he’d seen her in the Weyrling lessons and everything, but that was when he was busy trying to pay attention.
The Bronze let out a rumble of a purr at the scratching and he momentarily shut his eyes like a contented feline. Then he opened one to look back at Isonth, since he felt it was horribly rude not to. Oh, yes. He wakes up at all sorts of funny hours. I normally wake him. This was said in distinct pride, as if contributing to your human’s insomnia was a good thing. What is Yours doing? The shells, waving on their strings, caught his attention, as most moving things did.
The Bronzerider nodded at La’s question. “Yeah. Itchy dragon. That and he wouldn’t let me go back to sleep again.” Right about that moment, he caught La’s eyes and felt a slight tingle. “…Han? Could you move your head a little? I can’t feel my feet anymore…” Sharding pins and needles feeling… it didn’t help that Han was already running to stocky.
Meanwhile, a third being had just woken up and was most distressed at finding Hers missing. Lytah hissed in annoyance and made a quick search of the bedfurs, just in case C’ym had suddenly developed the ability to hide under blankets. Once she was satisfied that he was indeed missing, she went out to find him. At least it was a short search. She let out a happy-noise----which sounded like a cross between a squeal, squeak, and purr---she happily settled on his shoulder, nuzzling under his chin.
It was all very awkward.
“…This is Lytah, by the way. I don’t think you’ve met her yet?” C’ym added, a bit lamely.
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Posted: Sat Apr 25, 2009 10:42 pm
"I actually bought the shells at the last Gather," La answered. "I wasn't really looking, but they were pretty, so I bought them. I only just found them again." She shrugged and shifted uncomfortably, trying to reach a spot Isonth had marked as particularly itchy while her entire lower half was immobilized by the dragonet. Grimacing and shaking her head to herself, she inch-by-inch managed to rearrange herself enough to oil the patch and laughed at C'ym's comment about nostalgia. "They're getting big already," she remarked a tad ruefully, realizing that her entire lower half would be numb by the time the oiling endeavor had been finished. "I can't even imagine oiling this one in a few weeks. She'll sit on me and crush me," she joked quietly.
What do you mean, Lanamine? I would never hurt you! Isonth lifted her head to look La in the eye, her eyes whirling yellow with alarmed concern, and La couldn't help but laugh and set the oil down so she could hug her dragon. Why would you say something like that? I could never hurt you! she went on, and La laughed quietly against her skin. Apparently it was too early for her dragon to understand irony.
I was joking, dearest, she answered. Now put your head down so I can finish oiling you, she added, and Isonth wormed out of her grasp and dropped her head back to the ground. She listened happily to Hanumanth's explanation, snorting her amusement when she realized that unlike she and Hers, it was Hanumanth who decided when his rider would wake. The question made her tip her head thoughtfully, and she glanced over her shoulder in an attempt to see what Lanakirene had been working on. Um....I don't know. I think it will be something she wears, though, she remarked.
When the flit appeared, her head snapped up, and she watched it with bright interest as it landed on C'ym. As soon as she had ensured that the flit was all right, she turned her head to rest her chin on Lanakirene's shoulder, contorting her body in peculiar ways in an attempt to make herself comfortable. La winced but put up with it, only generally shifting every now and again to keep something akin to circulation in her legs. Looking at Lytah, La smiled a little bit.
"I like flits, and she's lovely," she said. A brief, wry smile crossed her lips. "I wish I had one, but I'm a terrible gambler. I've had a chance at a few, but..." she shrugged. "I always seem to lose. I'll get one eventually, though," she said brightly. After a moment, she glanced at the sky over the edge of the Weyrbowl, where the sun was just beginning to show itself.
"How is it, being a Bronzerider? Are you excited to be a wingleader someday?" she asked, sounding a tad wistful. There was only so much a rider of a female dragon could do. The men had so much more freedom.
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Posted: Sat Apr 25, 2009 11:06 pm
“In a few weeks, Han here will be able to eat me in one gulp.” The sentence was finished with an affectionate slap to the Bronze’s neck, just another encouragement to get him to move over a little. Han complied, but not before affectionately shoving his face at C’ym’s chest, a movement that nearly knocked the Bronzerider over. “Are you making a bracelet out of them? It’s very nice.”
Actually, he couldn’t really see the attraction of small dangly things off of a woman’s wrist, but hey. This was polite, right?
The shells were, however, very relevant to Lytah’s interest. The green flitt ignored the dragons for the most part and focused more on the people. Her head tilted to one side and then the other as she clacked her little jaws together. Very slowly, she attempted to climb down C’ym’s arm so she could investigate the little clacky things more closely. They made funny noises, which meant she simply had to go check them out. Unfortunately, Hers didn’t seem to get the message and kept trying to keep her on his shoulder. That made the little flitt chitter with annoyance, but her eyes remained green without the telltale swirls of orange anger.
Something to be worn? Han eyed the growing anklet with curiosity, trying to imagine just where a human would wear such a thing. It doesn’t look like it would make a shirt… is it a belt? Mine sometimes wears those. Of course! It had to be some sort of a belt. It didn’t look wide enough to be anything else.
Getting impatient with one itch in particular, Han rubbed one wing against the ground to get rid of it. But, he stopped at La’s words. Wingleader? That sounded very… important. Like really important. Maybe even really, really important. Letting out a soft noise, Han turned yellow concerned eyes on C’ym. What’s that? What’s a wingleader?
“I… uhh… yeah. Yeah, I am looking forward to it.” C’ym admitted this with a wide smile. “I know it sounds really egotistical of me, but I’m looking forward to becoming a wingleader. I think I’d make a good leader. Oh… Han. Don’t worry about it. Being a wingleader is just what you want. It’s all about being a good example to everyone.”
So La liked firelizards, huh? Well, maybe the next time Lytah Rose, La would get an egg. Providing, of course, that C’ym could find the little things. Lytah had all of the mothering instincts of a brick, unfortunately, and about as much common sense when it came to finding good nesting sites. “What about you, La? Looking forward to joining a Wing? Maybe we’ll even end up in the same one.”
Despite his encouraging words, he still sensed the threads of worry from his dragon. If that wasn’t enough of a clue, the dragon’s eyes were still swirling with faint traces of yellow. “Don’t worry about it, Han. You’ll make a great leader… Coriath said you’d be a good one, right?” Back to La, C’ym smiled sheepishly. “Han’s got a bit of a self-esteem problem. He met Bo the other day and I think that might’ve shocked him a little.”
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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 1:12 pm
La laughed a little bit at the idea that the dragons were going to get so large so quickly. Of course, Isonth had more than doubled in size since the hatchday, but still, it was almost impossible for La to imagine that soon enough, her dragonet would be almost completely grown up and ready to fly. Flying! She was looking forward to that lesson, but for now, she was content with the other things they were learning. Blinking as she realized C'ym had asked her a question, she smiled sheepishly and then shook her head. "Anklet, actually, but same general idea," she said, then shrugged. "I'm not usually one for jewelry, but like I said, I thought the shells were pretty. Anklets are the least likely jewelry to get in the way, so I figured I'd use them that way." When she noticed the flit inspecting the shells, La laughed quietly and reached over Isonth to pick up a loose one from the bag. Offering it to Lytah, she looked at C'ym and then blushed when she realized what she had done. "I'm sorry, I should have asked!" she said, eyes wide and looking horrified with herself. "Can I give her one?"
I don't know, Isonth said slowly at Han's questions, and she looked over at La and poked gently around in the girl's mind, trying to figure it out. The images she got were confused, until La realized what she was doing and projected a clear picture of an anklet into Isonth's mind. The dragon snorted in soft confusion and shared the picture with Hanumanth. Mine says this, she remarked.
I think it's like a belt only on your...feet? Had she been human, she would have scowled her confusion. As it were, she just projected bewilderment at La, who took pity on her and explained.
"Jewelry," she said aloud, as she figured it was probably easiest to just explain to both dragons at once. "Little pretty things that don't really do anything but look nice. Mostly girls wear it, but sometimes boys do, too," she added, and then glanced at C'ym. "Not lots of boys, though." She quirked a small smile and then tried to stretch, only to wince as she realized she was still trapped under Isonth. "All right, moving now, sweetheart," she said decisively, pushing Isonth off of her as C'ym expressed his eagerness to be a wingleader.
She couldn't help but grin at him as she finally dislodged the dragon and went to work massaging the feeling back into her legs. "Of course you'll make a good wingleader," she teased gently, "elsewise you would have Impressed a blue." When he asked about her joining a wing, La nodded slowly, looking thoughtful. "Yes..." she began, and then frowned a bit. "I've not really thought much about it, to be honest. Isonth's a big green already, though, so I imagine we'll be seeing a lot of action." Nodding decisively, she watched C'ym's exchange with Han and couldn't help but smile.
"Oh...he's darling," she crooned softly, and brightened when C'ym mentioned Bondyeth. She rather liked Bo's rider, although the dragon would need...some work. "Oh, yes...the other bronze," she said with a shake of her head.
I don't think he much liked me, Isonth remarked, and La sighed and patted her. "I don't think he much likes anyone other than himself," she answered, and looked over at Han. Shooting C'ym a quick, questioning look, she half reached out in an offer to pet the dragon. "You're a bronze, Hanumanth, and a very fine one indeed. You'll make a wonderful wingleader. Don't worry," she said. Isonth, also catching onto Han's upset, stood up and went to lie down beside her clutchmate. Crooning, she nuzzled him.
Lanamine is right, she informed him. You are a fine bronze and I'm sure when you fly all the dragons will look to you. She encouraged him with a snort and an all-too-human sage nod she had already picked up from Lanakirene. Bumping her muzzle against his flank, she scooted halfway back to La before deciding she liked it in the middle and stopping. La shook her head.
"Isonth!" she said, exasperated. "I wasn't done!"
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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 11:13 pm
Oh, and anklet. Jewelry was still horribly impractical, but at least La was trying to be… uhh… practically impractical. The fact that La actually blushed was oddly amusing to C’ym, possibly because it was the first time in a while that he had seen a girl blush. Normally, they just saw his face flush with color. It was nice to see the positions reversed for once. “Yeah, it’s fine. If you don’t give her one, she’ll probably try to steal one anyway,” C’ym said with a shrug and a smile. It was nice of La to ask though.
Lytah eagerly grabbed the little shell in her hands and, at first, attempted to eat it. This didn’t go very well, though. C’ym winced at her attempt, but, thankfully, the shell remained whole. There was no telling what would have happened if the firelizard had managed to eat some bits of broken shell. At first, the Green was disappointed, since she had expected something delicious. Well, it was awfully salty… She removed her from her mouth and tilted it about in her little hands, apparently admiring the sheen of it.
Han blinked slowly at the explanation before tilting his head to one side. So… it’s like a belt for her socks? he hazarded a guess. Those were, to the best of his knowledge, the only bits of clothing worn on feet. Oh, there were sometimes things on the outside of socks---shoes!----but people in Ista rarely wore those. Or socks, for that matter. It was too hot here.
Pretty things, huh? Han glanced at Lytah once more, watching as the firelizard continued to move the shell around. So… shiny things are pretty then? Alright! I can get a pretty thing for C’ym! He got up slightly, but then La continued to explain that most boys didn’t like pretty things like that. Oh… the bronze weyrling melted a little at the thought and moved to lie down once more. He wanted to give His something anyway.
“Han… you don’t have to give me anything. Don’t worry about it, alright? I’ve already got you.” Corny? Yes. But still true. His smile could only be described as apologetic, since he wasn’t sure how La would react to this sort of sappiness. It was so sappy that there was a distinct risk of it sticking to other people. But Han was the type that responded well to such things.
“Thankfully, H’dek seems as nice as Bo is rude,” he pointed out. “Maybe the little Bronze will learn better manners eventually…” although he wasn’t counting on it. From what he had heard, the riders were more likely to change than the dragons. “Yeah… H’dek said that Bo doesn’t care for Greens much… I’m sure he’ll figure things out soon.” That was a pure C’ym comment; Bo just wasn’t seeing clearly, that was all.
At least Han and Isonth got along well. Watching the two siblings interact was adorable.
The Bronze Weyrling snorted softly. Bo is a wherryhead! he said decisively, deciding that he did NOT like the idea of anyone talking badly about Isonth. She was just so nice! How could anyone be mean to her? Anyone who was so mean just had to have something wrong with their brain. He moved over to Isonth and flopped down next to her protectively. This was his friend, shard it all, and he would stand by her!
“Han! Don’t use that sort of language! Especially not around ladies! You should know better than that!” The scolding was automatic, really. But to hear Han use such a word… it just wasn’t right. “Sorry, La… Han’s just being a little… I don’t know. Snippy about Bo. I don’t think he liked him much either. He did at first, but he’s had a moment to think about it now.”
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Posted: Mon Apr 27, 2009 7:55 am
La watched the flit with amusement as she tasted the shell, and held back a laugh when the Green was obviously disappointed with that turn of events. But as soon as she knew that Lytah wasn't going to redouble her efforts to eat it or any other similar nonsense, she nodded and smiled.
Isonth, who was half-consciously relaying Han's words to her, focused somewhat on the flit but more or less listened to Han instead. She liked her clutchsibs, generally, but he was definitely one of her favourites. She seemed to have some peculiar, confused memory from Hers about her hatchday that indicated that she had always liked Han, but she couldn't entirely fathom what it meant and thus more or less left it alone. The exchange between Han and C'ym made her eyes whirl green with amusement before they settled back to contented blue, and that conversation she did relay quietly to La.
So that was the reason for the corny line? Adorable. La quirked a a smile at C'ym's apologetic one; with her limited experience as a dragonrider, she was becoming fairly certain it was hard to avoid lapsing into sentimentality and corniness. Somehow, the dragons when they were little just seemed to warrant it. Shaking her head, she reached out ineffectually at Isonth, who was still settled far enough away that La could no longer reach her and huffed. The feeling was coming back to her legs by way of pins and needles, and La would be trampled by runnerbeasts before she attempted to get up and walk.
"H'dek's a sweet boy," she agreed, making grabbing motions at Isonth, who totally ignored her and looked gleefully up at Han when he came over to her. When C'ym went on speaking, La smiled a bit. "So he doesn't like Greens?" she frowned just a tad, but her expression went bright soon enough. "That's all right. Dragons are dragons." She shrugged.
Isonth crooned happily and nuzzled Han when he flopped down, projecting warm fuzzies to both her rider and her newfound friend. He's just silly, don't worry, she said, seemingly unfazed by the little bronze's insistence on Bo's wherryheadedness. La merely smiled at C'ym's apology.
"It's nothing," she answered. "Isonth generally gets on with everyone, but I haven't really had time to meet any of her more...standoffish clutchsibs. Dragons can dislike dragons just like people can dislike people. Isonth didn't even notice that Bondyeth didn't like her, I don't think. But I was cutting up a wherry at the time, so that was probably part of it."
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Posted: Mon Apr 27, 2009 8:12 pm
“Won’t be easy for H’dek to become a Wingleader if his dragon dislikes Greens,” C’ym pointed out, completely oblivious to his own hypocrisy. “They make up some half of the dragons here, right? He’ll have a hard time leading them if he dislikes them just because they’re a different color.” The bottle of oil was shook in Han’s general direction as C’ym went on, “Hey, Han! Don’t you want to finish here?”
But, since the Bronze continued to ignore him, C’ym gave up. “You better not wake me up before sunrise tomorrow because your hide itches! I’m warning you!” the hand holding the oil bottle shook itself ineffectually at Han who continued to ignore his rider. “Dragons… Isonth seems really sweet,” he commented, changing directions from the most egotistical dragon ever to the sweetest.
C’ym hadn’t had much of an opportunity to meet his fellow riders either; the little Bronze kept pushing his rider to be better and better than everyone else, which rarely allowed a decent conversation. He winced at the memory of the wherry-butchering lesson, remembering how embarrassed he had been to be called up in front of everyone. Like an errant child, really.
Isonth’s soothing words calmed Han a little. The last vestiges of orange vanished from his eyes, replaced by the far calmer blue color. Well… Isonth wasn’t angry about it… but that didn’t mean he couldn’t be. He continued to give grumbling little mewls, even when his eyes were calm.
I still don’t like him, he confided in Isonth. Since the topic was getting his ire up, he decided to talk about someone else. Have you met Yansanth? You’d like her! She’s nice. She needs lots of help.
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Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 10:36 am
La couldn't help but smile at C'ym's apparent bitterness toward the other bronzerider. She wondered if it was competitiveness or simply a clash of personalities that had left the two unhappy, and then realized that it was likely something Bondyeth, rather than something H'dek, had done that had C'ym so ruffled. "Maybe he's not cut out for leadership," she said vaguely, smiling when C'ym shook the bottle of oil at Han and gained no response. She fruitlessly repeated her own grabbing gesture at Isonth, who looked up at her and snorted quietly before returning her attention to Han, and then shook her head and smiled up at C'ym.
"Dragons indeed," she answered, then smiled in vague embarrassment and looked away as C'ym complimented her dragon. "She wants to be everyone's friend," she answered with a smile. "I don't think she'll ever meet a dragon she can be convinced won't like her...even ones like that nasty green who mauled poor Astri." La didn't know much about Haanyath, and was pretty sure she had no desire to. She knew that occasionally maulings occurred, but that squat, angry dragonet looked like nothing but trouble to her. But that wasn't her business, and she changed the subject quickly.
"I'm really excited for when we finally get to learn flying," she said, unable to keep the eagerness from her voice. "I'm not sure how Isonth feels about it, though. She trips over her own feet on the ground, and I can't imagine she'll be much more graceful in the air." She chewed her lip as she transferred her words from aloud to inward; the last thing she needed was her dragonet making a mistake and falling.
Isonth, looking up from where she was still trying to thoroughly nuzzle Han, tipped her head at La, eyes whirling a sudden yellow. I will not get hurt, Lanamine! I will be a good flier! We will be all right, you'll see! I could show you now, she added, flicking her tail in concern, and La giggled quietly and shook her head.
No, no, Isonth. Don't worry about it. I'm sure you can fly. We'll do well, I know. she said mentally, smiling wryly as her little dragon's eyes returned to their serene blue and she turned her attention back to the mewling little bronze.
I have not met Yansanth, what is she like? She needs help? What sort? Is she all right? the mention of a dragon needing help got Isonth's attention up, and her eyes, which had barely just stopped whirling, acquired all new traces of concerned yellow. What is wrong with her? she asked, bumping Han's neck lightly in overeager concern.
La, hearing Isonth's words, winced and sighed. Isonth, calm down. Yansanth is all right. She's a Queen, she can take care of herself.
Oh, she is a Queen? Isonth asked, pulling her head back and tipping it up to better look at Han's eyes. What sort of help could a Queen need?
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Posted: Tue May 05, 2009 11:09 pm
In all honesty, C’ym didn’t know H’dek or Bondeyth well enough to have any real animosity for either. It was simple competitiveness. By now, the young man was beginning to recognize one simple fact: Bronzes were almost always destined for positions of power. So, really: H’dek was just in the way. Nothing really personal.
“I didn’t think any dragon could dislike her. I mean, she’s not… you know… offensive or anything.” Woah, smooth one there, C’ym. He was practically oozing charm. Unfortunately, oozy charm simply as good as non-oozing charm. Almost as soon as he said it, he realized it sounded wrong. Running a hand through his hair, he shifted slightly since his butt was starting to fall asleep. “Well… I mean she’s very nice. I remember how she urged Han to find me. And she waited to make sure he was alright. How could anyone hate a dragon like that?”
Oh flying. Judging by the way C’ym’s eyes closed, this wasn’t such a good thing to say. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m looking forward to it,” he lied through his teeth so much that they practically whistled. The truth was, he was afraid of heights; a horrible thing in a dragonrider, but he’d always meant to get over it before something like this came up. He still had time, right? A few more months at least? “I haven’t really thought about how Han will be in the air. I’m told that he’ll probably be an average-sized Bronze.”
Han nodded. Yes, she’s a Queen! And our clutchmate, Isonth. Which means we have to help her. Coriath says it is our duty to serve the Gold and we must be loyal and everything. We must do our very best to help her. Now… how could they do so. He rumbled softly in thought and spread one wing so it could catch the morning sunlight. Well, she’s very shy. She’s nearly always hiding. We need to help her be more confident. We can’t have a queen that hides from her own shadow. And. And. And… she wants a pet! We could get her a pet!
“Oh Faranth…” once again, C’ym’s hand found his face. “Han, I assure you, Yansanth does not need a pet.”
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Posted: Tue May 12, 2009 3:59 pm
La wasn't sure if she was relieved to be out of the jockeying for position that the male dragons would inevitably bring with them. Somewhere in the back of her mind, so far hidden that she'd never admit it, she had always thought that she would Impress a blue and maybe even someday become a wingsecond. Impressing a green had shoved those thoughts so far back they were almost nonexistent nowadays, but there was still a twinge of regret that La would never be able to prove herself that way. But she was beyond over it at this point.
"That's sweet of you to say," she answered C'ym's compliments with a smile and watched Isonth, resting her chin on her hand as she thought. She had lucked out with one of the sweetest greens she had ever met, and seemed to be just as interested in the well-being of dragons as La was. It wasn't the partnership she'd imagined, but it was better than she could possibly have fathomed.
A glance up told her that she had said something amiss about flight, and she tipped her head, wondering if the boy had managed to Impress in spite of a fear of high places. She had heard of that, and while she was fairly comfortable with heights, she could definitely see how others would...look toward flight only reluctantly. At C'ym's comment about Han's size, La nodded. "I think Isonth's going to get big. I mean...I think most marks at the Hatching were on her egg producing a brown. And she's no lightweight as it is." She shrugged. "I guess we'll see, eh? It's all part of the fun."
Isonth listened carefully to Han and considered the words. She hadn't paid much attention to the little Queen, and she obviously should have. And she ought to go find her now and make certain she was all right. They couldn't have a Queen scared, Han was right! Oh, my, she said slowly, she certainly does need help...I hope she will be all right. It must be awful to be so very shy. She considered the possibility and then decided that she was very, very glad she was not shy like Yansanth or some other dragons.
A pet? She cocked her head at Han's words and snorted. You mean like Yours keeps the little one? She spared a quick glance for Lytah before turning back to Han. Aren't the little flitters for humans?
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Posted: Thu May 14, 2009 9:03 pm
Lytah sensed her owner’s dismay at the thought of flying and immediately went about soothing him. Or at least trying to. Her method was to curl around his neck and rumble quietly, like a contented feline. The weird thing was, it actually worked. It was hard to be upset or uneasy with a happy flit around. Of course, she hadn’t let go of her shell yet; judging by the way she held it in her little hands, she never planned on letting it go.
C’ym smiled and rubbed the firelizard’s head gently. And to think his parents had hoped the firelizard egg would help their son get out of his ‘phase’… which reminded him of an important question that should always be asked. “What did you do before you became a Candidate? You don’t seem like a Weyrbrat.” That is, she didn’t seem like Nan, who was, in C’ym’s mind, the quintessential Weyrbrat: obnoxious, parentless (although that really wasn’t her fault), and without any sort of manners.
He cast an eye over Isonth, mentally weighing her against the other Greens in the clutch. Haanyath came close, but she was stockier than Isonth. Definitely stockier. But he really wasn’t any sort of judge on dragons, so he kept his mouth shut about this.
Lytah wasn’t the only one who sensed C’ym’s anxiety. Han’s eyes briefly swirled with yellow and he turned a glance over to his rider. Something was wrong. He didn’t know what was wrong, but anything wrong was bad enough. With a quiet rumble, he shoved his head at C’ym’s shoulder, nearly pushing the young man to the ground. Don’t be so worried, Mine. I’ll be there. I’ll keep you safe, he rumbled before he let C’ym back up.
Thank Faranth that C’ym had him! Han didn’t know what the man would do without him. Uh-huh. Just like that. Pets are good! Mine loves Lytah and I think Yansanth would love one too. Mine says they’re very comforting. Han paused for a moment, reflecting on this before he added, Although, I don’t know how they can be more comforting than Ours.
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Posted: Thu May 14, 2009 11:54 pm
It was adorable watching Lytah try to calm C’ym’s distress. La suppressed the slightest pang of jealousy at that, getting Isonth’s brief attention. Apparently Yansanth wasn’t the only one in the Weyrling barracks who wanted a pet. But La, unlike the dragons, knew how flits were procured, and to whom they bonded. Of course…it was theoretically possible that, since the little animals could Impress to others of their own kind, they could…no, not the time to be thinking of strange puzzles like that. That was the work of…she didn’t even know. Someone who wasn’t her, at any rate. She found herself answering C’ym’s question with barely half a mind, still puzzling out the intricacies of flit Impression in the back of her head.
“No, I didn’t grow up here,” she answered with a shrug. “But I grew up in Ista Hold, so not very far away. My mum was a Candidate once upon a time…she had a bit of fun after she failed a Hatching, came back home…and had me a bit later.” She shrugged. “Grew up without much of a goal, though I think Mum probably always wanted this for me. I did this and that, but never got an apprenticeship. I like the healers’ work the most, though.” She paused briefly, then glanced at C’ym and smiled. “I’ve been here more than four turns now, though, so I know most of the other Candidates and the Weyrbrats around my age. How about you?” she wasn’t sure how long the boy had been around; C’ym was right in saying she wasn’t Nan—La was far less interested in arrivals than the other girl.
Lanakirene's circular reasoning had gotten Isonth confused, and while Han and Lytah tried to calm Theirs, she snorted irritably and blocked all her Rider's muddled thinking from her own head. That sort of thing wouldn't do to anyone; best not to think about it. Comforting little flitters, hmm? She considered the concept for a while before nodding her agreement. It made sense. I know Mine wants one, she said. Though I'm not sure she's said anything about comforting. That's my job to do anyway. She snorted emphatically.
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