Falling Star (Gold Eikask's Run)

[Ember]

Eikask was not the epitome of creativity. She would have easily repeated her first Run, just with more skill, but Hers insisted that, since she must Run, she Run with style. So the gold had set out long before her glow had fully set in to...well, to plot, really. Plot out her course to give her males the most challenging Run yet. They were useless if they couldn't properly keep up with her. She would not be as merciful as her first Run. Only the best male for her and the best father for her babies would do.

The gold found herself in an empty weyr by the time she was quite ready to begin the night's event. She approached the dragon ledge with a surprising amount of grace (this being not tripping at all) and let loose a wild howl. There was an additional brush against the minds of the browns and bronzes. She would not be waiting long so they'd best hurry or be left hopelessly behind. When the males arrived she glanced at them before leaping off the edge, wings spread wide to keep her aloft. She was no day flier but she was a skilled glider.

She had polished her aerial skills greatly. Even she could admit to being clumsy on the ground, but in the air? No wher could possibly hope to match her there. She would be amused seeing if her males dared try. She executed a fearless roll from one air current to the next, letting the wind carry her in an unexpected direction, down and sharply to the left of her starting point. Come, come!

Eikane was, surprisingly, the one napping pre-Run rather than the female draconid in question. He'd had a need to be up during daylight hours and had tired out considerably earlier than his usual. He was woken up by the slow build up of Runlust as Eikask explored the weyr for a good place to start her Run. The moment she left the ledge was the moment he was half-startled awake. Half asleep and half naked the goldhandler stumbled towards the door between his rooms and the hall and flung it open. Late comers wouldn't be tolerated - once those who were coming arrived than he'd shut the door.

[Rowana]

Roisk was ready. He'd seen Eikask's glow and knew that soon she would run again. This time he wasn't going to be left behind so easily. It looked as though Eikask had something new planned for them as well. The large bronze trotted down the passages that led to the dragon weyrs, his bulk just brushing the side as he passed. He doubted Eikask intended to run inside where she would be just as easily hampered, but then, it was hard to judge the mind of a queen.

Roisk rounded the entrance to the empty weyr in time for Eikask's challenge. The bronze felt his blood boiling with the thrill of the chase. Eikask was strong, beautiful and in charge, everything a queen should be in his eyes. Growling with excitement, Roisk charged the ledge. The other males would have have to watch out for him this time! Unfortunately, he should have known what Eikask would do when she choose to begin the chase so high from the ground. One moment she was on solid rock, and then she was in the air.

Roisk spared a second for regret. He'd never had a desire to glide. A wher belong on the ground with solid earth beneath their claws, in his opinion. Flying about in the sky was a dragon's domain. Even if he'd wanted to follow his golden queen, he could not. The once proud wings that might have given him skills to match even hers, were scarred from knives and dragonfire. They no longer had the strength to hold the wind for more than a few seconds.

Snorting in frustration, Roisk skidded in a sharp left turn at the end of the ledge. He refused to back down just because he could not follow as Eikask clearly wished. He would prove to her that whers could chase just as well without gliding. Fearlessly, Roisk ran along the ledge in her wake. It wasn't long before he ran out of rock, but instead of slowing down, he leaped. Frail wing sails caught the air just enough to carry him forward and down to another ledge. Eikask was just to the right of him, and Roisk crooned in adoration. Never before had he wished he could glide as she did. He hoped his determination to follow pleased her just the same.

Roivao had been ready for this ever since Roisk had sent him the warning signs. Unlike Tiida, Roisk was polite and kind enough to let his handler known when he intended to chase. Roi was grateful for this, even if chases were something he'd gotten used to over the years. Being chased, as with Tiida, was still something of a shock. Thankfully for Eikane and the other males, the warning gave Roi enough time to lock Tiida in his room. Humming thoughtfully, Roi trotted down to Eikane's room while Tiida's screams of fury fell on deaf ears. Waving sheepishly, Roi slipped inside and settled against one wall, content to admire the goldhandler through Roisk's eyes.

[Rei]

Darmosk had been restless. Far more restless than usual and Darmori being Darmori hadn’t the faintest clue why. The normally amiable and easy going male was as jumpy and anxious as a wild darter in a cage. Hmm. Laying back on his bed the bronze handler was oiling Harmony when the large bronze finally got to his feet and pushed the door open to pad out into the hallway. For a moment the blonde thought to call him back. But well. Maybe if the bronze went and found someone to play with he would be calmer. Thus Darmori let the bronze do as he wished. Long gone where the times when he had to worry about his wher anyway. The large bronze had come into his own and already bore a few scars from battles with resident felines. The male had shown that he could take care of himself and protection of what the bronze considered family had seemed to have been interbred into him. Darmosk would be fine.

Stepping out into the dark hallway with a soft snort and testing the air for scent the Darmosk made his way out of the apartments tongue still lolling out of his mouth and goofy expression still on his face. He set himself on the path for the weyr, only stopping once along the way to roll in the fruit discarded by a nearby citrus tree. This time Pidesk’s had his door completely shut so the perfume of the jungle would have to do instead. Quickening his pace as he caught a flash of gold hide sliding into one of the weyr tunnels he gave a soft excited bark and trotted in a slightly quicker pace after his dam. It was her glow that compelled and excited him. All thoughts that the lovely Eikask was his mother had been pushed aside to be replaced by a desire that was almost completely instinctual. Wanted her he did. Wanted to pass on his genes to the next generation, and her glowing golden glow promised that chance.

Darmosk stepped into the empty weyr with an answering croon to her howl. His whole body tensed in anticipation yet hind quarters wagging in excitement. The almost canine like expression not fading even now. The rest of the chasers where given polite barks and well wishes. Eikask herself was pressed with thoughts of adoration. Then she was off, flinging herself boldly off the ledge in a move that impressed the young bronze thoroughly. This was only his second chase after all. He was still learning, yet….Darmosk never really thought much before he acted anyway. With an excited bugle he sprinted for the ledge and flung himself off it with reckless abandon.

Large as his wings where they caught the air easily his long whippy tail striving to keep him at least partially straight in the air. Unfortunately with the way the bronze was built, keeping his balance while gliding was something he had to work hard to achieve. Add that to the fact that he never had practiced gliding much and well….he wasn’t exactly doing the most wonderful job of staying straight and steady at the moment. Trying extremely hard not to list completely to the right Darmosk gave a happy unconcerned bark. Look! He was doing it! Oh wait shiny gold. Yes that’s what he was supposed to be concentrating on.

“Craaaap Darmooosk.” Darmori groaned out as the first wave of lust hit him and had him doubling over dropping the rag he was using to oil Harmony and earning a displeased hiss and nip from the large gold. The chubby mandyr flung herself at the headboard and scrambled up onto it disgruntled at the interruption from the large bronze, but knowing there was little she could do about it. Half falling off the bed the handler shakily got to his feet trying to fight off the rising tide and finding himself rapidly losing control. Finally submitting to the bronze as he gained the hallway, Darmori/Darmosk tilted his head and half skipped down the hallway to Eikane’s room. Slipping inside he crooned happily to the gold approaching slowly and giving a polite dip of his head before pausing a respectable distance way.

~~~

The striped brown wilding had been very aware of Eikask’s glow. He had been carefully tracking it since the first glimmer. Wild the brown may be but he was still valuable to the bonded ones and he knew it. Proving himself time and time again to be a reliable and trustworthy ally. The scared wher still checked in with Dmisk almost nightly. The blood pact he had made with the vicious blue still standing strong. His eyes tracked the glowing gold has she made progress towards the weyr, a soft whine in his throat. The human stench was strong there. Nearly overpowering. It was instinct that kept the Tiger brown away and routed to the spot at first. Although he did begin to pace restlessly at the jungle tree line. Wanted to follow but his wild ancestry screamed no. Mercenary though he was, with no handler he did not belong in that world. Not completely.

Still that did not mean he could not follow in some way and the male ended up stalking closer to the weyr proper, using what cover he could. The striped wher ended up traveling up and alongside the craggy cliff face. Foothold to foothold he glided and clambered as silently as possible. A soft rumble of determination sounded in his throat as he finally made it to an empty and abandoned ledge quite a bit below Eikask. He could still sense her there, see her heat signature where the gold perched proudly on her pedestal. Gingerly stepping out onto the abandoned ledge the Tiger brown waited, teeth bared slightly and muscles tensed. When the gold let loose her wild howl the wild brown added his own, loud and challenging, the noise ringing through the canyon.

Then Eikask leapt into the air and the wild wher tensed, all his muscles bunching as he waited…..now. Flinging himself off his perch his torn and tattered wings caught the air and he maneuvered himself into a air current. He couldn’t glide for long but he was determined to show her he could. Well aware of his limit’s the striped male didn’t intend to stay in the air for long. Not one prone to blind trust he watched the other pursuers with careful caution. The Tiger brown remembered the gold’s last run and did not plan to be caught unaware.

[Requiem]

The night was waning. Dmisk was in rare form tonight - perhaps due to the absence of the regular female leeches that His seemed to constantly pick up, even though they were not bonded to his kin. Aware of his glowing sister and how close she was to Running, he hadn't hurried his rounds. No, in fact he'd been more thorough than usual to prevent so many strangers from wandering into his territory after his sister.

But it seemed that the memory of spilled blood held strong; there was little movement on the edges of the whers' territory. Only the striped, wild brown.

Jaws parted in what might have been a silent laugh at the sense of that same brown stealing closer and closer to the weyr proper. Yes, chase. Perhaps his golden dimwitted beauty of a sister would show some sense and choose wild ichor. They hardly needed any more of that weak, domestic wher ichor that she'd gotten from Pidesk. Dmisk yawned widely as he finally arrived at the drumheights high above the canyon that was drawing all of the males 'worthy' enough. If worthiness could be defined by color.

He turned to the man who had been pacing him all night. Eyes narrowed slightly, tailtip flicking. "I don't know why you bother. It's not like she'd condescend to pick a blue," Dmitri grumbled, running fingers through sweat-dampened curls. Because, Dmisk explained patiently, Eikask was his sister. "Mhm. You do realize that this would be another reason against if you were human." There was nothing but a dark ripple of laughter in Dmitri's mind in response to that comment. Human. How silly His could be. Now go, be a good mindmate and attend to her Highness's counterpart.

Dmitri shot Dmisk a tempramental look, but that was the extent of his protest. No one argued with the blue ghost. Not even a harper. Down the hill, into the tunnel leading down into the apartments, Dmitri had just entered the dark hallways that were home when Eikask's howl split the night. Others followed. Dmitri didn't have to be bonded to Dmisk to know that the blue's wasn't among them. He walked toward the door and leaned against the frame, not going in yet. After the last one. Wanted to see who all thought they were worthy of his sister this time. Roisk. The baby Darmosk? Heh.

Dmisk didn't bother to let his presence be known right away. Instead he stood on the edge of the cliff, taking in the chasers and the chased from this vantage point. His wings spread then refolded. Stretching them. Unperturbed. She would not get too far away just yet. He and his sisters had no problems with gliding like the other poor beasts.

[Ruby]

On the far side of the Weyr from Dmitri and Dmisk, Piden and Pidesk were being equally thorough (he'd taken the south quadrant from Yoalla tonight simply because he knew he'd need to be up anyway). They remembered the last Run (or at least Piden did), and as much as he wouldn't object to sleeping with Eikane again, really Pidesk had only won last time because pretty much all the other whers left standing had been injured, fighting, or blue. It seemed unfair that the Bronze should win because he was in the right place at the right time twice in a row, and there was no need to risk more of the Weyr's whers just for a Queen's run. Pidesk had already chased off one wildling, either a very dark bronze or a very shiny brown, who had clearly been attracted by Eikask's glow. Young, and stupid, and easily scared. He wouldn't be back.

Piden slung the bow - the one he barely knew how to use, yet - back over his shoulder, then hopped up on Pidesk's back to cover the twenty or so yards between where he'd been standing and the tree he'd hit instead of some ghostly wherry or whatever else was lurking in the dark. Swearing vaguely, he wrenched the arrow out of the tree trunk, returning it to his quiver with a sigh. "I suck," he complained, starting back towards the Weyr with Pidesk in tow. He didn't suck, Pidesk assured him, he just needed more practice. "I suuuuuuuck," Piden tried again, flopping over Pidesk's back and dragging his feet through the dirt as the Bronze kept walking. Well fine, Pidesk agreed, noncommittally. If Piden was that interested in sucking, he probably did. Pidesk loved him anyway.

Suddenly, their conversation was interrupted - Pidesk went totally still, every muscle tensed. "Now?" Piden asked, mentally calculating the remaining distance back to the Weyr. This was about to suck. Now, Pidesk agreed, then sped off, his Brown-sized frame serving him well once again. Almost before Piden could think about it, Pidesk was swallowed up in the darkness. More muttered swearing, and the Handler took off at a quick lope. The Weyr was so far away.

It wasn't actually, Piden was just being dramatic. He trailed a dark form down into the apartments, ignoring the howl that certainly marked the flight's beginning, knowing instinctively where he was headed. Eikane, of course. So single-minded was he in his need to find the Goldhandler that he nearly plowed into the shadowy figure - Dmitri - who slowed to a stop just inside the door frame. Piden still clipped the Bluehandler's shoulder by accident as he turned sideways to slide through the door, potentially knocking the Blue off-balance and into the room. Maybe, maybe not - Dmitri was Blue. Piden could care less, when Eikane was there. Which he was.

Pidesk made it just as Eikask took her wild leap - and a good thing, too. Otherwise he might have slid right off the ledge anyway, unable to brake in time. Luckily, the Bronze had always been a good glider, particularly agile due to his long, thin wings. He couldn't stay up as long as Eikask could, though, so while he matched her daring roll (and offered her an appreciative croon), he landed on a ledge quite a bit higher up before launching himself into space again.

[Ember]

Roisk, Darmosk, Wildling, Pidesk. Hmph. They would be enough, she supposed. Better to have the loyal ones than the controlling brothers - when did she say they could pick her mates for her? - and the wild ones who only approached to get a piece of her. Speaking of the brothers...she was surprised not to see Dmisk or Quintresk. Well, Quintresk being absent didn't bother her in the least, but her blue brother's absence did. Perhaps Nautsk and Yosk had become risks to her position in the blue's mind? If so she would have to put the two greens in their place. Dmisk was hers and hers alone (barring, of course, the Loud One).

It was not the time for that though. The gold glanced over her shoulder to see her chasers as they managed her test. Nothing unexpected from Roisk. The bronze would probably never bother to glide, even for her sake. A shame really. Whers ought to use what they had to their best ability, in her opinion. She was probably a little biased though; gliding allowed her to be graceful naturally, something she could never do walking. Her bronze son was met with private amusement. He had an...interesting glide, to say the least. He would never be a match for her skills but even she could appreciate effort. Sort of.

The Wildling that flung himself into open air from below earned a slight rumble from her. It wasn't exactly approval but it was interest. As skittish as wild whers were around her weyr she hadn't expected any to actually touch a place a human once used as a home. Pidesk's gliding was equally as predictable as Roisk's lack of gliding. She was quite certain her previous mate would follow her anywhere. She had made her claim on him quite clear, after all. With those present...hmm, yes. She could do that. She glided close to Roisk before going further out to catch a cross wind that would blow her away from all her males.

The gold just barely landed on a ledge before slipping too low to manage it. As it was she scrambled with her back paws a little before flinging herself into the weyr and back into a lower hallway. Her planning earleir had not been in vain, though she certainly had needed some help from the winds to pull it off. Eikask was a large queen but thankfully her form was slim. The stairs going upwards might be more trouble otherwise. It was hard enough not tripping. She climbed steadily back up towards the very top of the cliff. She'd been unique, yes? She howled again to make sure she hadn't confused her males too much. Surely if they were chasing her they could handle that much.

Roivao, Darmori, Dmitri, and Piden, huh? A half-hearted glare was directed towards the gold's blue brother before Eikane moved to close the door. In or out. His choice, this time. If he was out, though, he'd be staying out. The gold then turned to his males and smiled darkly. If they thought he was the one putting on a show for them they were sorely mistaken. Eikane crossed his arms and started tapping his foot, the classic sign of impatience. He motioned with his head for them to begin...whatever they wanted. He wanted to be impressed.

[Rei]

Still listing, Darmosk just barely caught a wind and was able to steady himself enough that he was no longer in danger of tumbling into the river below. Steering was becoming quite an issue through and the bronze adjusted his trajectory as well as he could towards the cliff face. Aiming for a ledge he hit it a little too fast and ended up almost crashing, talons screeching across stone as he struggled to keep from face planting. Finally coming to a stop the male whipped his head around, tongue still lolling out, as he tried to figure out where Eikask was. There! A bit below him. Disappearing into the weyr hallways again. With a bark of excitement he gathered himself and leapt for her ledge, haphazardly gliding for it and hitting it with a loud thump.

Shaking his head to clear it from his jarring landing Darmosk gave another quick glance at the other chasers. Barking encouragement at them he wagged his tail excitedly before trotting into the darkened hallways after his golden dam. Eikask’s howl echoed through the stone corridors and he gave a quick rapid fire succession of excited barks after her. Leaping forward he charged up the stairs after the fading noise of her cry, baying like some excited hunting canine at her heels. This was fun. The blood singing in his veins pushed him forward. Unfortunately that same excitement made him oblivious to any threat, including the one charging up from behind in a frantic haste teeth bared…..

Darmori gave a soft croon to Eikane as he moved to shut the door. Tilting his head he gave a bark to the others almost bouncing in place as he attempted to bottle up his excitement a little. This was fun was it not? The gold’s dark smile had him pausing in his enthusiastic movements, a soft whine in his throat, until he caught the toe tap. Oh! She wanted amusement? Of course silly him. With a happy whine the blonde strode forward towards Eikane and then abruptly stopped a few feet away. Pitching forward the bronzehandler did a handstand, walking on his hands a few steps forward before he lost his balance and turned it into a tumble. Righting himself he grinned up at her, eyes searching her's a playful light to them. A soft wuff of amusement at his own trick before he looked towards the others and then back to the gold. They needed too play to yes? A tilt of his head and a soft whine to the others. Didn’t they want to please her?

~~~~

The Tiger brown gave a soft growl as he landed on another ledge and sprang immediately into the air again as if burned. He did /not/ like this. Hated the human stench. Touching their domain felt wrong. The only thing keeping the striped wher from bowing out of the run was the golden queen in front of him. A prize worth taking if he could manage it. Rest of the chasers be damned. Talons finding purchase again on the stone the wildling skidded to a stop on the ledge, nostrils flared and eyes coloring with anxious shades.

Eikask had immersed herself into the human corridors and the stench was nearly overpowering. Lips pulling back to display his teeth in a challenging snarl, the Tiger brown answered the gold’s howl. An angry and desperate edge to his own. The baby bronze was already after her. A shiver ran through his frame as the male restlessly paced along the ledge the others coming closer.

Finally with an angry snarl the wild brown charged into the weyr after Darmosk. Fear and a bit of desperation caught him then as the overpowering scent of the humans assaulted his senses. There was no going back now though and so the male powered after the other whers. His taloned feet striking sparks on occasion where they struck against stone.

The male was quickly approaching and gaining on Darmosk’s flank and he bared his teeth, a rumbling growl building in his chest. If the baby did not move faster or get out of his way the wild wher had no qualms with incapacitating him and moving forward though or over him. Teeth snapped impatiently at the young bronze’s tail. Move! The sooner they where back out in breathable air and away from closing walls the better.

[Requiem]

The man bared his teeth at Pidesk when the bronze pushed past him, pressing himself into the doorframe, but that was the extent of his reaction. Stupid bronzelings could not be expected to be aware of their surroundings in the presence of a gold and he was feeling merciful today. That, or just lazy. Amusement danced in his dark blues at the look the gold gave him and he sauntered past her, passing just far enough from her to not quite touch.

Of course she protested. He never had done things exactly as she'd wanted, like the rest of these pitifuls. The ironic part was she'd be more upset if he didn't show at all; he knew his golden sister. A brow rose at her body language and he stretched langorously before crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back against the wall. As if. Even if she'd had enough sense not to dismiss him on account of his hide, Dmisk wasn't the sort to dance for a chance at her. Or do...whatever it was Darmosk was attempting.

The pale figure plunged down the cliff face towards the water rushing inexhorably to an even bigger drop-off, wings tucked. None of the others would see, of course, so it was less showing off and more the quickest way down. His wings flared early, straining against the gathered air pressure. Taut. Then, with an audible snap, he caught the wind and glided the rest of the way over the swirling waters of the river before the waterfall.

Dmisk plunged down the tunnel that led up to the cliff, taking the wider paths around the queen and the rest of her chasers. Not terribly small, Dmisk. Brown-sized and built thick unlike the majority of the other whers, he was all muscle and muscle didn't squeeze into tight places well. It did, however, make a sizable impact when thrown into another wher. The blue may not have cared so much about leaving violence out of a Run, but brownlings - even brownlings he obviously favored - had to know their place.

No threatening the Eikask babies.

His shoulder slammed into the wild brown's, jaws snapping shut perilously close to the brown's neck before Dmisk surged ahead of him and disappeared back down another side tunnel. It switch-backed around, emptying right before the exit to the cliffs above. Dmisk took it and sprung forward, circling around so as to be behind the whers when they reemerged beneath the moonlight.

[Ruby]

Some tiny part of Piden registered Dmitri's somewhat aggressive response. Really, that residually aware part of Piden though, Dmitri should be glad he was being ignored - Piden didn't exactly have a 'hands off' reputation during flights, except where it came to the females. Usually.

That was all the attention he paid to the Blue, though; most of his attention focused on Eikask. She was... not quite angry, but undeniably dark - she must have learned that smile from Piden himself. Darkly alluring, and, apparently, quite impatient. She wanted a show? Well, Darmosk tried his tumbling, Dmisk (typically) stayed back against the wall, practically oozing boredom. Roisk seemed to be hanging back, too... looked like it was Pidesk's turn. He shed bow, quiver, and shirt in quick succession, leaving them in a haphazard pile behind him. Really, the bronze was only good at one thing.

Still, he approached Eikask confidently but slowly, ready to back off if she made the slightest sign of distress. He wasn't trying to force a catch, he just wanted to demonstrate his abilities. He didn't grab or wrap his arms around her, as much as he might have liked to - rather, he ran light fingers over Eikask's bare torso, testing her patience, palms settling on pectoral muscles as he leaned up to barely brush her neck with his lips (if she let him). That sort of thing would send shivers through anyone in their right mind, but who knew what she'd think. He dropped back to flat feet, removing his hands and stepping back - but turning to the side rather than crossing back across the room, claiming a place at her side, a step behind her. As it should be, yes?

Pidesk... missed. He had great agility in the air, but the long glide from one ledge to the other was more than his thin wings could handle. Instead of reaching the same place she did, he hit a ledge one weyr closer than the one she had chosen. Deciding not to bother making the jump over and crowding in with the other chasers, the bronze pelted in past a sleeping dragon, ghostly silent on paws used to crackling jungle floors. A startled face, pale in the moonlight, tracked his passage, but no one called out. Luckily, the rider hadn't bothered with a lock, and a solid headbutt broke the catch, allowing the door to swing out into the hallway. Thin, aerodynamic Pidesk shouldered past it quickly, just in time to see a golden glow disappear up the stairs.

Suddenly, more whers crowded their way into his path - Darmosk first, his trotting gait and wide shoulders clogging up the passage for the others. Pidesk was faster - that he knew - and apparently the wild Brown was, too. Peaceful Pidesk watched in growing agitation as the Brown got closer and closer to the baby Bronze, growing more dangerous with every stride. Pidesk would never commit an act of violence unless it was absolutely unavoidable, but he couldn't just stand by and watch one of his children get bitten, either. He was inches away from stepping in (although how he would fit, he didn't quite know) when Dmisk did it for him.

The Blue got a hum of relieved thanks from Selenitas' oldest Bronze, who now fell back a few steps to keep an eye on the situation in front of them. No one would be more excited than Pidesk when they were back in the moonlight, with space to breathe. Space meant calm, and the wild Brown certainly needed a heavy dose of that.

[Rowana]

A loving, if apologetic, hum escaped Roisk's throat as Eikask passed. Truly no queen of any special could be so elegant, yet powerful when she flew. It was well that so many others agreed with him. This beautiful one deserved all the males to admire and chase her. He only felt it a pity that he couldn't chase the way she seemed to wish. Dipping his head, Roisk focused on leaping from ledge to ledge. Large and powerful, such feats of strength came easily to him. Still, it was a zig zag path that took a little longer to reach Eikask's landing than the others.

Roisk was delighted to leave the skies, though the close quarters of the halls offered little better. He would have trouble turning corners in the tight space, but he would hardly let that stop him. With a roar of excitement, Roisk charged into the passage. It seemed that their wild friend was not taking this turn of events quite so amiably. Roisk felt the anger rising and he growled dangerously. He would not raise a claw himself, but he did not approve of violence, even in the worthy cause of chasing a queen. He should have known Dmisk would cause trouble again, but at least this time it was the wild one who had threatened first. Those two had better keep their fight clean, or Roisk wasn't going to stand for it.

Roivao's eyebrows went up slightly in confusion. Roisk, steadfast and confident, still held most of his mind. He wanted to please Eikane, but he had no idea how. Piden and Darmori were sure giving it a good try though. Roi didn't see any need for him to make a fool of himself as well. He glanced over at Dmitri. He wasn't doing much either, it seemed. Roi shrugged, offering his queen a helpless smile. Not everyone was good at flirting.

~

The young man stared as the ghostly, bronze shape passed silently past his bed. It went on through his door, hardly even breaking stride. The man blinked, his mind still fuzzy from sleep and shock. He could have sworn he'd just seen a wher run through his room from the outside.

Garaeth? the man stared at his open door, still trying to comprehend what he'd just seen. Hmm? Remind me to get a lock for our door. Of course, T'ke-love, now go back to sleep.

[Ember]

Eikask trotted rather merrily up the stairs, the scent of open air getting stronger as she ascended. However, noise from behind her had her growling in response. This was her Run and she did not intend to let any of the chasers get out of hand this time. Dmisk was gone as quick as he'd come but she didn't condescend to brush his mind. Blues shouldn't matter. With annoyance spurring her on she lead her males to the top of the cliff at a slightly quicker pace. She lead them a bit away from the exit only to double back through them to bark and growl.

Sure it had only been one or two causing any trouble and detracting from her own magnificence but they were all in it together, as far as she was concerned. Dmisk, who had seemingly decided to reappear, was met with a cold shoulder. The gold broke out into a slightly stumbling run (harder to tame her feet when they were moving so fast) away from them all, thinking on the fly about what more she could do. Gliding was getting old despite her skill with it. It didn't show her everything the males had to offer her.

Her idea came to her and she didn't care how unconventional it was. What the queen says goes! She stopped suddenly, swinging her body out of the way of any males unable to stop. She'd let her males put on a show for her. In short order four lines were drawn in the dirt using her claws, one for each of the males she was considering. Dmisk, of course, didn't count. No matter how secretly fond of her blue brother she was, Eikask would never bring herself to pick a blue as a mate. She could only hope there would someday be brown or bronze male with intelligence and skill to be a fit match for her.

The lines were about two wher's lengths apart from each other. Eikask brushed against each of the males in turn to guide them to their positions just in front of a line. Sumo whers, anyone? Their goal was to push the other past their line. No claws or fangs allowed. It was Piden versus the Wildling and Darmosk versus Roisk. Hopefully they would provide sufficient entertainment for her. Eikask glanced in Dmisk's direction and bared her teeth in a mimic of a smile. Interesting, no?

Darmori's playful antics brought a faint smile to Eikane's face. The little son was cute and funny, but was he worthy enough to graduate from that title? He was still skeptical. Dmitri's lack of participation bothered him but he shrugged it off. Whatever. Piden's approach ended up having all of Eikane's attention. He watched curiously as the bronze approached, allowing the male to touch him. He tipped his head to the side a little to make access to his neck easier. Bold. Eikane found he didn't mind it and let Piden stay where he was. When Roivao proved he wouldn't be trying anything the gold decided to move among the males, laying light, posessive touches on her bronzes. All his.

[Rei]

Darmosk was completely unperturbed by the sudden rise in tension going on behind him. In fact he hadn’t really noticed it at all. The snap of the wildling’s teeth near his tail though caused him to push himself a bit faster. Oh whoops. He was sorry. He didn’t mean to be a road block. The young bronze picked up the pace not that he could go that much faster, big as the bronze was.

Emerging out into the moonlight with the rest he barked happily at them as they sped past him, tongue still lolling out the side of his gaping maw. This was just wonderful! Except when Eikask doubled back to bark and growl at them. Oh where some of them not playing nice? Darmosk sat back on his haunches confusion written across his face and in his whirling eyes. But the confusion did not last long. The golden love was off and running again and with a bay of joy the young bronze was on her heels. Well as on her heels as he could be. He was growing pretty tired.

When Eikask pulled to a stop Darmosk came to one as well, his tongue still lolling as he panted. Watching her he remained silent. Then head titling to the side as she explained he barked happily to his queen and let her guide him to his line. An affectionate head rub against whatever part of her he could reach before the young male faced his opponent Roisk. Tail furiously wagging from side to side he barked a happy challenge and lowered his head to the other large bronze. Was Roisk ready? Wrestling was one of Darmosk’s favorite games.

Pawing at the dirt like a bull herdbeast he simply charged the other bronze in playful excitement, seeking to plant his head in the other’s chest and shove for all he was worth. Roisk seemed like he would make a good and fair opponent.

Darmori crooned happily to Ekaine and scrambled to his feet as the gold approached. The touches where accepted with a happy croon but he didn’t move to touch back. Not unless she wished it to be so. Titling his head he watched the other chasers, paying attention to their reactions as well. Pretty she was. So pretty.

~~~

As his teeth snapped on only air the Tiger brown growled. But he didn’t have much time to rally for a second attempt because movement out of the corner of his eye had him bracing for impact. As Dmisk snapped at his neck the wild brown instinctively ducked his head to protect his throat, stumbling a few steps before regaining his footing. As fast as the blue ghost had come he was gone and the large male brushed understanding briefly across the other wher’s mind. No more snapping at the baby bronze. That didn’t of course carry on to the rest of the chasers and he gave a flash of teeth to the other bronze males behind him. Just in case either of them through ganging up on him was a good idea. The wilding wasn’t above spilling ichor tonight, bronze or not. He wasn’t really expecting to though.

Emerging out into the moonlight with the rest the male really lengthened his stride. Away from walls. Away from crowding. Away from the overpowering stench of the humans. The Tiger brown flung a howl into the night in celebration. Even when Eikask doubled back to berate them all he merely took it with the other cheek turned so to speak. When she galloped off he surged forward after her. With the gold’s attention back on her run the brown wilding fell back into the pack of other chasers. Sliding close to or between them he bared his teeth or a slashed the air nearby with talons when the gold’s attention was elsewhere. That’s all he offered currently though. Small threat displays. He didn’t need to offer more than that to make his opinion of them all known. Weak.

When Eikask drew to a stop the Tiger brown restlessly paced, holding himself a little aloof from the bronzes. The gold’s idea was met with the barest uplifting of his lip. Not the idea of a test of strength in general but the no claws or fangs part. It felt pointless to him. Nevertheless the wilding restlessly drew up to his indicated line. Pacing back and forth along it he bared all his teeth at Pidesk, daring the bronze. Did he think himself better? The Tiger brown’s snarl turned into a sinister smile as he tensed. Waiting….

[Ruby]

Oh, this was not good. Pidesk had stoically turned his nose up at the Wildling's snipes, and ignored Eikask's scolding - as it turned out, he had not had to be involved in disciplining the Brown, thank Faranth. When the Gold came to a stop, though, the Bronze danced sideways out of her way, looping around slowly and suspiciously in his much less flattering walking gait. Lines in the sand... Pidesk had a hint of intuition, getting an idea of what was coming. He did not like it at all.

And yes, in short order Eikask explained what she wanted, confirming Pidesk's fears. Any other day, he would tell himself this was just a game - no teeth or claws, after all - but clearly, in the middle of a run, the wrestling match was in earnest. It was a fight, and the Bronze hated fighting. He could intimidate or threaten to protect his Weyr, but even that made him uncomfortable, and anything that might come to an actual confrontation meant he called for Guard backup. Which, granted, was the function of the Watch, but still. It was the function of the Watch in part because of Pidesk.

Once they were paired off, Pidesk sized up his opponents. As the smallest Bronze, it made sense that his opposite would be the Brown, but the tiger-striped Wher across from him looked anything but small. He was nearly as big as Pidesk himself, and certainly more muscular than the streamlined Bronze. In such close quarters, Pidesk wouldn't even have the advantage of speed, really. He would have to be smart, and out think the Brown. And, knowing Eikask, he would have to make the first move or lose face. As much as he loved her, she was downright evil sometimes, picking tests she knew he would fail. Well, he just couldn't fail as badly as she expected.

With a barely audible sigh, Pidesk feinted right, intentionally making it look as if he didn't really know what he was doing. The obvious move, now, was for him to go left, to try to get the brown from the side. Instead, Pidesk came in low with startling speed, hoping to catch Tiger off guard and knock one of his legs out from under him. If the brown were scrambling, it would be much easier to herd him back towards his line, putting the pressure on as he tried to recover. If he missed or Brownie caught on fast enough, Pidesk should be able to roll sideways, out of the way of retaliating blows short of the other Wher just... jumping on him.

Luckily, the human half seemed to be doing much better, giving the Wher confidence. Pidesk stayed at Eikask's side, not quite able to bring himself to actually be angry at the others she touched - but he was jealous none the less. Darmosk had been cute enough, and deserved a reward, he supposed. Roisk, on the other hand, still seemed to be in his perpetual shell. When Eikask was done with him, Pidesk detached himself from her shadow, stalking over to put a hand on Roisk's shoulder. "She expects to be impressed," he murmured, not quite sure why he was giving his competitor advice - something in his mind nagged that Roisk should do well, though. "Better do something, or she'll throw you out. Do knife tricks or something, tackle the kid. Whatever you're good at." Tossing his head in Dmisk's direction, he added, "He doesn't count," in case the Blue's inaction had confused his companion.

[Rowana]

Claws screeched on stone as Roisk brought himself to a halt. He wasn't going quite so fast that he couldn't stop without incident, even if it was a surprise. His curiosity sparked as Eikask changed tactics. This was something completely new and he wasn't entirely sure what to make of it. Change, wasn't something this bronze took very well. Still, he could hardly deny his lovely queen her wishes during her own chase. Patiently, he allowed himself to be placed opposite the young Darmosk.

Roisk spared a look for the wild brown. He'd better play by Eikask rules no matter how tense he was. No more time for thinking about him, however, as Darmosk charged forward. Roisk rumbled deeply in amusement and tensed his muscles. He and the young bronze were a good match, and Darmosk had just enough enthusiasm to make this fun. Lowering his head almost to the ground, Roisk pushed forward to meet the charge. He pushed his head and powerful shoulders up into Darmosk chest as he came. With a bit of luck, he would catch the other bronze off guard and push him up to his hind legs. With only two legs on the ground, Darmosk's balance would be upset enough for Roisk to gain the upper hand. The question was how closely the excited youngster was watching his opponent.

Roivao felt his nerves soften as Eikane drew closer. His features broke into a loving smile and he hummed sweetly when the queen touched him. It was almost teasing and inviting all at once, very hard to ignore. Blinking in surprise, Roi glanced over at Piden and sighed. "Not much good at anything," he admitted in a soft mutter. Still, he supposed it was unfair of him not to offer the pretty gold something for her kindness. Roi pushed off the wall and gave a sweeping bow to Eikane. Smiling sheepishly, he brought his lips together to whistle a sweet tune for him. It hardly did the queenhandler justice, but he did want to please him, if only a little.

[Requiem]

Aw, poor thing. Was he stealing some of her attention away from her by making sure her bronze baby wasn't getting eaten by wild whers? How dare he? Darkly amused, Dmisk moved just enough as Eikask stumbled by to brush lightly against her flank, letting her feel his amusement. Silly golden sister, she was. What would she do without her brothers to help keep things running smoothly? Probably blame all the other whers for being stupid and take no responsibility for anything, actually...but that was beside the point. Not that he let her in on those thoughts. Nope, just the amusement at her attempt to brush him off.

That amusement paled somewhat when she so obviously excluded him from her next little trick, though. (After having launched himself clear over her rather than bother with stopping or veering suddenly in the traffic jam that resulted from her sudden halt, he'd stopped a short distance away from the gold.) Any irritation that he might have felt was not reflected in eyes or posture as he folded his forelegs neatly beneath him and let his head rest on them. His head lifted slightly as she addressed him. Looking for his approval? Dmisk's head canted to one side and he rose smoothly.

An interesting idea, the male returned to his sister, coming up to stand alongside her. But...where was his opponent? The thought was no sooner expressed than the male's foreleg looped over the spot where her neck met shoulders and pulling Eikask against him. The male's tail slipped along hers. Wasn't she afraid that he'd force a catch on her while all of her knights in shining armor were otherwise occupied? he asked her, only half-teasing.

The tall harper's eyes narrowed slightly at Piden's comment to Roivao. Didn't count, huh? Sure he did. He was just being nice and letting all the pretties attempt to impress his sister without interference. But he didn't have to be considerate if they weren't going to acknowledge it. No, Dmitri couldn't win his sister, but he could certainly influence her decision by making certain other suitors look pathetic by comparison.

So he stepped past the crazy tumbler, between the two older bronzes who thought blues didn't matter, and took Eikane into his arms with a small roguish turn to his lips. "Now it's my turn, isn't it, sister?" he purred. "You didn't think you'd get away with not even a touch. Tsk." And Roisk was oh so conveniently providing the music for him, too. He led his sister in a casual dance to the tune of the whistle, Eikask pressed lightly against him.