Avu
Weyrleader Ce'thian Rider A'emi Handler Sena Harper Matteo Weyrbrat Riaren
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Post by Avu on Sept 23, 2008 15:55:03 GMT -5
Corinth rumbled, clearly amused by Eriannath’s answer. I am sure that would serve just as well, although don’t worry—as long as you don’t cripple him permanently, you may whack him all you wish. He needs to learn some manners anyway. Vaguely, he wondered if T’rid would be quite so irritating if he had been a brown dragon, and decided that he probably would be. He’d been irritating when he was at Selenitas Hold, too, hadn’t he? It wasn’t like it just popped up after he’d Impressed. Although Corinth was still debating on his mentality when he’d just Hatched, because quite honestly sometimes he wondered why he loved T’rid so much. He could be absolutely unbearable when he chose to be.
Probably he’d just felt bad for the boy and decided to make sure he didn’t hurt himself.
The bronze crooned in response to Juliya’s thanks, but he didn’t reply. What was there to say? T’rid, meanwhile, watched her dismount rather critically, and then shrugged wordlessly, swiveling slowly on his heel to let his gaze fall on Eriannath. Oh, what fun this would be. She was small—that was always a good thing, right?—but still. He had to oil her, and that was quite frankly boring. He sighed to himself, as Corinth would offer no sympathy. Actually, T’rid was rather under the impression that Corinth would laugh.
And suddenly she was nudging him with her nose? T’rid’s brow furrowed in slight confusion. “Lovely to meet you, too, Eriannath,” he said dryly, as Corinth rumbled in amusement at his response. I don’t think he likes swims very much unless he initiates them, Corinth responded solemnly, providing Eriannath with the last time he had forced T’rid to swim. It had been…very interesting. The Bronzerider had actually been under the impression that Corinth was flying to a sunny spot near the lake—instead of which Corinth decided to plunge headfirst into the water, Rider and all. It had been fun, certainly.
Go on, Ridmine, Corinth added for his Rider’s benefit, nudging the young man with his nose again. T’rid hissed in irritation at the bronze as he quite nearly overbalanced him in his enthusiasm, grabbing at his nose in order to steady himself. “Fine.” He glanced at Corinth as if judging him. “Look, if I ask you to hold my shirt, you won’t get it wet, will you? Like, you won’t throw it at the water?” You’re no fun. “Thanks.” A sarcastic grin curled the corner of T’rid’s mouth as he pulled his tunic off, throwing it at Corinth, and delved into his pocket to pull out the oil. Lovely, he thought grimly, uncapping it and digging out a rag. It looked rather as if it had been an old tunic once, he thought idly, as he moved towards Eriannath reluctantly, blotting some oil onto the rag.
“Anywhere in particular you want me to start, O Lovely Green?” he asked, the rag suspended halfway in one hand.
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Post by glamourie on Sept 25, 2008 14:54:55 GMT -5
Maybe, but I would never dream of harming Yours, Corinth, Eriannath replied gently. She would not have even hit Juliya with her wings. She wasn't the type to be physically abusive. In her opinion, it was better to simply ignore the rude than reward them for bad behavior. Most people who were badly behaved wanted attention. Ignoring them was a lot better punishment, even if it would have been funny to see someone who was mean take a tumble into the water nearby. No, that risked hurting. Eriannath wasn't capable of hurting people anyway. Once upon a time, Juliya told her that she was too nice. Juliya was definitely the more severe of the two of them, but Eriannath didn't think she was too nice. She just... liked people.
Crooning, the green leaned forward to nudge T'rid gently -- again. This time on the side opposite the one she had nudged before. Hmm. He is on the tender side. I don't think I blame him. I don't think additional marination would help him any.
Juliya resisted the urge to snort in response, and bit her tongue. Hard. It was difficult to keep herself in check when she was imagining T'rid as a great big steak, juicy and dripping. Marinated indeed. He probably could have done well with additional marination but not in the form of water. Wine tended to make most people lighten up, but she didn't have any desire to point that out to him. Instead, she sauntered across the sand and flopped down, then sprawled out on her back, arms folding behind her head. She slowly rolled over onto her side to watch T'rid in interest, then glanced at Corinth. The bronzerider really was a spoil sport. She was half-tempted to do something evil... while he was distracted with Eriannath.
You promised not to, but I didn't. You didn't promise not to let me do it, she began slyly, her gaze flicking between the bronze and her sprawled out green. I don't think he'd notice. She's distracting him. You know it'd be funny to see him swimming around chasing the shirt down. The river's not too rough here - he wouldn't get carried off or anything. He can swim, right...?
Ignoring her rider, Eriannath lifted her wings and crooned again, before sprawling out more. Corinth, will you tell Yours that he may start wherever he wishes, and that I appreciate it? Polite as always. Juliya usually started just below her wings, but Eriannath had no preferences and, as her rider had predicted, made very few demands. Her eyes whirled pleasantly as Shine flew down from her head, gliding over to land in the sand next to T'rid. She sniffed at the firelizard, causing Shine to roll over in the sand and squirm about happily. Her amused rumble was undeniable. I think the little cousin wants some attention, too. How funny! He was just oiled yesterday. I do believe he's jealous. Shine, Shine, please wait your turn.
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Avu
Weyrleader Ce'thian Rider A'emi Handler Sena Harper Matteo Weyrbrat Riaren
Posts: 2,439
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Post by Avu on Sept 25, 2008 15:30:20 GMT -5
Corinth rumbled in low amusement. She wouldn’t consider hurting His? Well, he would (and did) consider it quite often. But that was partially because he and T’rid argued so much…although such conversations did amuse both of them. Getting along didn’t seem quite possible, unfortunately. No? Well, I’m sure /he’d/ thank you, the bronze said cheerfully, adding a gentle emphasis on the word. He himself would be very amused if T’rid was knocked by a green wing into the river or something—but perhaps it was better that he didn’t. He would know Corinth had a hand in it if the bronze started laughing, after all. If he’s too rude just let me know and /I’ll/ whack him, he added as he lay down in the warm sand, the first set of lids closing translucently over idly whirling shades of green and blue, with green dominating. Yes, he was sleepy—the heat was the reason for that…
Another minute, another nudge. T’rid managed to keep from stepping sideways. Gentle as Eriannath might be, she was still big in comparison to him, and a ‘gentle’ nudge was enough to set off his balance slightly. Lucky she wasn’t as big as Corinth. I could nudge you, too, so you could make a better comparison, Corinth offered drowsily, prompting T’rid to shoot him a sharp look. No. Thank you. The second set of lids closed. Your call. T’rid stayed silent, watching as Juliya flopped onto the ground. Shardit, he envied her. The task before him was not very pleasant. Perhaps an overenthusiastic Candidate might be delighted to do something like this—but he wasn’t.
Corinth visibly started as the idea of Juliya doing something to T’rid’s clothes was passed through his mind, although his eyelids stayed shut; they flickered before their opaque surface settled again. I think letting you do something to them counts as me doing something, he considered. And I don’t think he’d chase it down. He’d probably just order me to. The bronze didn’t mention that he probably would obey, too. He can swim, yes…he probably won’t thank you for throwing his shirt out there, though. He sighed slightly, his eyelids flickering back up to contemplate the surface of the water. Hmm. Perhaps when he’s nearly done oiling Eriannath? Unless I’m wrong, he won’t be very happy to keep oiling after he’s gotten drenched.
The bronze paused to glance over at Eriannath and T’rid, amusement traveling through their mental link. You look /very/ chagrined, he told T’rid happily. I’m glad it amuses you so much. T’rid blinked, clearly unaware that he had been making a face. Eriannath says you can start anywhere, and that she appreciates it. To Eriannath, he reported, I have told him. T’rid sighed reluctantly, moving around to Eriannath’s upper neck and head. The presence of the fire lizard was ignored—T’rid glanced briefly to him and then back at Eriannath. Are you going to oil the little one too? Corinth asked him, flicking his tail at Shine. No. Shardit, no. Another slight sigh, and T’rid began at the green’s eye ridges, rubbing in the oil carefully. He’d usually be much less careful—almost rough—had it been Corinth, but this was a green. In comparison to Corinth, she looked delicate. Delicate and breakable.
He finished one eye ridge, moving to the area of hide between the head knob and eyes, absently smearing the oil onto the green hide and using the rag to rub it in. Corinth opened his eyes entirely, watching with an amused air. He’s being gentle, the bronze reported to Eriannath. If you want him to scratch…?
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Post by glamourie on Sept 26, 2008 20:41:17 GMT -5
Eriannath crooned to Corinth, but otherwise did not reply. Regardless of whether His was rude or not, she had no intentions of complaining to him about his rider. It wasn't in her nature to complain, period. Very little upset the green. By nature she was friendly, after all, and extremely tolerant. By sheer virtue of luck she had managed to survive in the north, but on a fighting wing she and Juliya would not have made it. The green simply was not vicious enough. She was far too forgiving, and Juliya's constitution wasn't right for dragonfighting. So they'd managed to land themselves on the queen's wing. In the south it seemed that was almost a badge of dishonor, but at Fort, Eriannath had welcomed it; it kept her safe from fighting in the War, and it kept her away from the dragons who did so frequently. The feelings throughout the Weyr and the sounds she heard regularly were bad enough. The north scared Eriannath. Fighting scared Eriannath. Conflict terrified her. She was too passive, too agreeable. Some people may have even used the words "doormat" to describe her. It would not have been inaccurate.
He can oil me however he sees fit, she replied as she relaxed, keeping her head down to make it easier on the bronzerider. She was trying to be accommodating, after all, as was her nature. I won't ask him to change how he proceeds simply for me. Thank you, though.
She wasn't fragile, though. Typically Juliya was more rough with her, but she would not make any special requests, not of Hers and not of another dragon's Mine. She did her best to keep things fair, after all. Usually Juliya managed to figure out what she wanted easily enough, but since T'rid did not have a mind-link to her, it was unlikely that he'd realize. That was okay. As long as he didn't skimp she'd be just fine until Hers oiled her again. Eriannath crooned encouragingly.
Watching T'rid in interest, the greenrider bit the end of her finger. "She's not breakable, you know. You can be a little more rough. She likes her eye ridges scratched like all dragons do," she commented, then picked at her nails. A slight clicking sound echoed off them as she regarded Eriannath seriously. Sometimes it surprised her just how passive her winged half happened to be. Ever since she hatched, too. How Juliya, who was an opinionated woman if mostly self-contained, had managed to Impress such an easy-going dragon was beyond her. She lucked out, though. It could've been worse. She could have impressed a green like Calistoth. A green who liked the fighitng. That would have been terrible. Eriannath was what she needed. "She won't ask you to do anything different, but I'm not above it. She's the nicer of the two of us. You can treat her like you would Corinth, you know. I doubt she'd mind at all."
After he's done, I'll snag it, then, she replied to Corinth, before adding, almost hesitantly, You two are from Selenitas, aren't you? You're not from Fort, and you don't act like a Benden bronzepair at all. You are far too kind. Did you hatch here...?
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Avu
Weyrleader Ce'thian Rider A'emi Handler Sena Harper Matteo Weyrbrat Riaren
Posts: 2,439
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Post by Avu on Sept 27, 2008 11:01:40 GMT -5
Corinth assumed that Eriannath’s croon was an—acknowledgement, if not agreement, to his statement. He watched her, clearly amused; his eyes whirled idly as his gaze switched from T’rid to Eriannath and back again. He had absolutely no hesitation in whacking His. T’rid knew it very well, as he’d nearly been bowled over several times when Corinth was a growing hatchling and Corinth had been a little…overenthusiastic…in his scolding when he’d gotten too snarky with someone. Even if Eriannath didn’t tell him, Corinth was quite sure he could catch any rudeness, but he’d leave it to Eriannath to point it out. If for any reason she didn’t, then Corinth would whop him anyways. It was much more satisfying than letting him get away with being cruel, after all.
Oh, but she was so agreeable. Corinth crooned, slightly confused. Did she not have a way she preferred to be scrubbed? T’rid had lost. It was right that he had to alter his ways, his patterns, his familiarities, to please her, yes? She wasn’t going to use that to her advantage? It is your choice, he replied with a slight shrug of one shoulder. Perhaps it had to do with T’rid not being Hers? What if Juliya had lost and had had to oil him? He probably wouldn’t order her around either, or whack her…but then, Corinth doubted Juliya would be as rude as T’rid could be when he decided to. Therefore, it seemed pretty fair that she did nose him around a bit. Well, hmm. His logic wasn’t everyone’s logic, apparently. Thank Faranth for that, T’rid muttered, making Corinth’s head come around in sharp surprise.
T’rid could feel each of Eriannath’s croons, the vibration on her throat being right next to his leg. It felt…odd…to have a dragon’s throat, usually high out of his reach unless it was Corinth’s, vibrating next to him. And when Corinth’s head was down, he didn’t usually croon anyway, being much more concerned with his own safety, or being asleep. He sighed absently as he rubbed the oil into her hide. It was so…so green. Corinth, as a bronze, should probably have some greenish-bronze streaks in his bright hide if T’rid looked hard enough—it appeared mostly as the slightest green sheen, nearly invisible. So much green. Yeah, a green that is actually green, there’s a surprise, Corinth commented dryly. You. Quiet. I’m already irritated at myself, I don’t need you to make it worse.
T’rid paused in his oiling as Juliya spoke. Not breakable? She looked it. A Glasscrafter might have made Eriannath if you compared her to Corinth, who was pretty delicate-looking already for a bronze. He bit his tongue to keep from saying so, and just scrubbed harder, using the back of his palm to smear in the last streak of oil on the first side of her head and moving to her head knob and neck, slightly rougher, although the idea of treating Eriannath like he did Corinth was an amusing one. Did she know how he treated Corinth? His and Corinth’s relationship was basically a rude awakening to anyone who thought Impression and finding one’s lifemate was like finding someone who never argued with you. “She might not mind, but you probably would,” he returned, his voice slightly taunting.
That sounds fine, Corinth agreed, too happy at present time to protest to one of His’ shirts getting wet. Perhaps that would convince T’rid to get a new shirt…he was tired of the earthier shades that T’rid favored anyway. A bright green shirt would be a welcome change from the normal browns. From Selenitas…? Yes, I Hatched here. Ridmine was born here, but he was fostered to Selenitas Hold. Neither of us have been in the North before. You know the clutch that Aslath Hatched from? Ridmine says I Hatched then, too. He couldn’t remember that…but he doubted T’rid would lie to him about something as trivial as that. The idea that his clutchsister was the Weyrwoman’s dragon amused him, though.
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Post by glamourie on Sept 28, 2008 1:16:58 GMT -5
"Do not presume, bronzerider, to have the remotest idea of what I would or wouldn't mind. Eriannath is not breakable," Juliya repeated, and then added for emphasis, "We are from Fort." If that did not explain her point, then T'rid didn't deserve an explanation. No, Eriannath wasn't a fighter, but she wasn't fragile. She'd put up with far worse than any human could dish out. As long as he was intelligent enough not to mess with her wings, she'd be fine, and that was standard with any dragon. The fact that T'rid seemed to honestly believe her green to be so weak irritated her and Juliya fought back the urge to stand up and properly break the boy's face. Did he think bronzes were the best fighters, the strongest? He would have been terribly wrong. The greens and blues were vicious most of the time because they had the most to lose. Size wasn't everything, but then, trying to explain to a man that size was less important than skill was about as effective as slamming her head into a wall in hopes of getting to see her brain. She'd have better luck slamming his head into a wall. Conceited man! Eriannath was not fragile!
... She was betting that she and Eriannath had seen worse than he ever would. And of course, as a male and a bronzerider, he could never accept and respect the strength of will it took to endure that. Typical. Just typical.
No need to fuss, mine. Let him think what he wishes. I do not mind. What does it matter if he thinks I am breakable, when I know that I am not, and you know that I am not, and Corinth knows that I am not? All with eyes can see that I am not fragile. He is silly, and it is not worth being upset. It does not matter. Do not let it upset you, mine. Besides, he is scratching more now. You worry too much and over the silliest things. I doubt he means offense.
To accommodate his oiling, Eriannath moved her head slightly and crooned encouragingly. Her eyes whirled a myriad of colors, all happy and rapid, the delight she felt obvious. It wasn't often that anyone other than Hers touched her, as Eriannath was a rather quiet and withdrawn dragon. Some would even say she was shy. She liked attention, though she would have preferred it not to be begrudging. She'd take what she could get, however, and made no effort to be demanding. Some dragons insisted certain spots be oiled better, but not her. No, the smallest touches made her happy, and it was a wonder she wasn't vibrating from the sheer excitement she felt.
Comforted by Eriannath's words and her obvious delight, Juliya's slight irritation fizzled away. She didn't stay mad long. Hard to do so when she had an insufferably happy and easy-going creature as her mind-mate. Truly she was one of the most understanding dragons Juliya ever had the pleasure of meeting, but then, in her eyes, Eriannath was flawless. She smiled slightly, then looked over at Corinth, curious. We're from Fort; like I told T'rid. Eriannath Hatched of one of Grenostith's clutches before she passed. Before we came here, we were on Grenostith and Kamerai's wing. She paused, then looked up at the sky. Did you know the Weyrleader lies about his age?
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Avu
Weyrleader Ce'thian Rider A'emi Handler Sena Harper Matteo Weyrbrat Riaren
Posts: 2,439
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Post by Avu on Sept 28, 2008 11:37:12 GMT -5
Oh, oops. Had he made Juliya angry? T’rid blinked, startled, and raised one eyebrow, slightly amused despite himself. Not breakable…? Well, she certainly looked it and T’rid could hardly be stopped from acting like it. It wasn’t his fault he was just so use to Corinth. The bronze was small for his color, but he was still much bigger than Eriannath was. And a lot pickier about when the oil where…wait, hold up, she was from Fort? Oh, in that case Eriannath…well, if she wasn’t just ignored by the bronze dragons and their Riders—then she was probably used to it. Was she ignored? He wasn’t entirely sure and didn’t feel up to asking for fear that he’d got a rock lobbed at him or something. “I didn’t mean physically so much as how I’d address her,” he responded dryly. “Corinth and I don’t get along that well.” Well, at least they got along well enough to take the ribbing good-humoredly, although sometimes when he truly was angry at Corinth, the bronze didn’t seem to care much—or even notice aside from an amused snort. “I meant,” he went on, “That I thought you wouldn’t like it very much if I started calling Eriannath names like I do Corinth.” Just because he didn’t exactly show complete respect to everybody he came across didn’t mean he was entirely clueless about everything. Nor was he conceited enough—quite—to not know that greens weren’t actually fragile. Was it his fault that they looked it?
You are /really/ not that good at conversing /nicely/, Corinth said bemusedly. …I—I’m so—so terribly sorry? T’rid didn’t think it mattered too much, to be quite honest, if the whole Weyr didn’t absolutely love him. Corinth paused. You are rubbing now, aren’t you? Rubbings feels so much nicer than stroking does, and I’m sure Eriannath feels the same way. I’m /rubbing/. And he was, too. T’rid could feel his breathing taking on the same steady motion of his scrubbing. Up, down, up, down, up, down…the motions were so familiar to him that he nearly stopped thinking about it. Unfortunately, letting his mind wander from the task on hand meant he thought about the arm-wrestling match—which he had lost—and that hardly pleased him. He jerked his mind back to the task on hand, moving steadily along Eriannath’s neck. Well, Eriannath, at any rate, seemed to like being oiled by him. I wish you were this easygoing, T’rid grumbled at Corinth, apparently forgetting that he’d probably already told the bronze so a few hundred times before. But then I wouldn’t be me, Corinth pointed out. That would be appropriate. Funny.
The bronze tilted his head. Fort…Fort. He hadn’t been there before, as he’d told Juliya, but unless he was much mistaken, they weren’t quite as bad as Benden…right? Or maybe that was the other way around, or perhaps they were both equally bad places, but he couldn’t help thinking that somewhere, someone had mentioned that Fort wasn’t so terrible. Grenostith was the Fort queen…who died. Right…and if she was on Grenostith’s and Kamerai’s wing, that meant she used to be in the Queen’s wing, which meant…So you didn’t fight as often as—as some dragons? he asked, slightly relieved. He liked Eriannath and Hers. It was easier not to be angry at Fort if they hadn’t stuck Eriannath into the middle of a battle with Benden, and right now he really didn’t need the desire to murder anyone at Fort, especially if they were already dead as D’loro and Kamerai were. Her next query seemed…very random to Corinth, and a bit bewildering. Ciceroth’s? Or the Fort Weyrleader? he asked, trying to clarify. He was quite frankly confused as to why someone would lie about something as trivial as age. It was just a number, wasn’t it…?
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Post by glamourie on Sept 30, 2008 12:43:11 GMT -5
"I can't imagine why you and Corinth would not get along well," Juliya replied dryly before she could stop herself, and then inhaled sharply. Sharding bronzerider, did he not realize how ridiculous he was? She flinched, but decided to drop the topic. It wasn't fair for her to be nasty in return. Two wrongs did not make a right and honestly, she wasn't entirely sure that T'rid realized just how little tolerance she had for arrogance, particularly when it wasn't fair. That and he probably was not being intentionally rude, although from the way Corinth spoke, she suspected he knew very well how bratty he came off. Childish and irritating really. Someone needed to knock his ego down a few more pegs. Unfortunately, she wasn't mean enough to deliberately hurt someone's feelings. So, instead of trying to retaliate, she folded her arms and huffed silently to herself, her gaze settling on the river. His next statement though earned a dry response of, "And you're not being deliberately gentle with her as if she'd break? Not just in words but touch? You're not now, but you were. Just don't forget, bronzerider -- that green may be smaller than Corinth but her claws are no less vicious."
It does not matter, Juliyalove; do not let him upset you so. He is not hurting me, he is not offending me. Why are you getting so upset?
Eriannath gazed steadily at her rider, her eyes whirling her confusion, before she crooned over at T'rid. No, he wasn't hurting her at all, and in fact he was rubbing a particularly itchy spot, which made her writhe slightly in pleasure. She had the distinct feeling that Juliya was being harsher with T'rid simply because he was a bronzerider, and from her scolding it was clear she did not approve. Juliya relented - slightly - and went back to relaxing in the sand, which made Eriannath vibrate happily. No more fighting - hopefully. She did not like it when Hers was upset and she liked it even less when Hers was upset at people. Why she seemed to have such a problem with bronzeriders and no other males puzzled her; most of the bronzes at Selenitas were nice, after all. Silly JuliyaHers.
Still half-sulking, Juliya laid flat on her back and stared up at the sky. She was comforted by the knowledge that her dragon was so calm. Eriannath really was more easy-going than she, although at times she could be quite vicious. From the sounds of Corinth's responses to T'rid, she was betting the bronzerider had no idea what that happy, generally good-natured green was capable of, and she kept her mouth shut on exact details. Some aspects of their past were not worth bringing up. Some were better forgotten.
We did not fight very often at all, Juliya confirmed, then added, and I meant Ka'rys. He lies about his and Ciceroth's age very often, and their experience level. He claims they were just out of Weyrling training when they came here and they weren't. They were on a full-fledged fighting wing for quite awhile. Why it mattered was beyond her, but Juliya did not like the lying. It made her nervous. She hadn't spoken to anyone else at Selenitas about it, but Corinth was easy to talk to - far, far easier than his rider. She had the distinct impression he was generally much more tolerant, too. It confuses me to why he'd lie, and I haven't told anyone else.[/i] Pausing, she added, for Corinth's benefit, I'm sorry if I come off nasty to T'rid; I don't mean to. I don't like it when people - particularly bronzeriders - treat us as inferiors. Spillover, you might say. It's not personal.
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Avu
Weyrleader Ce'thian Rider A'emi Handler Sena Harper Matteo Weyrbrat Riaren
Posts: 2,439
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Post by Avu on Sept 30, 2008 16:31:45 GMT -5
T’rid paused in his oiling, arching one eyebrow in mild confusion. He really hadn’t meant to irritate Juliya. Ah, well, old habits died hard. He had easily irritated the boys at the Hold and apparently, people at the Weyr were no less touchy when you found out what stung them. Apparently, he had just found out one of Juliya’s irritants…inadvertently, yes, but still. He made a mental note to remember that, just in case he ever needed to use it again. One never knew…meanwhile, though, it seemed a bit safer to keep quiet until he could figure out exactly how many ways his words could be taken…but as he had already discovered, old habits died hard. He couldn’t seem to help it. He did manage to keep the snarkiness to a bare minimum, however. “Don’t you?” The words were simple, could be taken any possible way—had his tone not been one of faint amusement and condescension. …Oops. T’rid was a bit too busy mentally berating himself for a moment to concentrate on Juliya, but he managed to pull out of it in time to hear her next comment. Smaller than Corinth…claws…no less vicious. Got it. “I’ll remember that,” he replied solemnly, barely managing to keep sarcasm from lacing his tone—he actually succeeded pretty well. Oh, that was good.
You know…you /were/ being awfully gentle… Corinth said hesitantly. Eh? Didn’t you hear what Juliya said? Wait, wait, /Juliya/? You’ve forgotten her? came the exasperated query. No…not that…but eh—you called her Juliya—don’t you usually call Riders by the dragon’s names? Like, ‘Eriannath’s.’ …oh. To T’rid’s eternal gratification, Corinth had seemed to forget about his previous question and fell into a brooding silence, closing him off effectively. That irked him a bit, but eh, T’rid could live with it. Thus he was completely oblivious to the confusion that the bronze dragon was facing as he rubbed the oil into Eriannath’s hide. She was so green…
He should tell His about Juliya. But she hadn’t wanted him to know. Well, maybe she did. And he should tell T’rid. Because…it was nice. And loyal. And T’rid would like to know…Corinth’s didn’t like secrets to be kept from him by his own dragon, after all. And…but…and…and…Corinth gave up with a weary snort, glancing over at Eriannath and T’rid. The young man had gotten to her shoulder, now, trying to rub oil into each crease of skin. At least he was trying to do a good job…although Corinth suspected it was more for his own sake than Juliya’s or Eriannath’s. The bronze’s gaze flicked next to Juliya, lying flat, and a slight amusement washed over him. Just figure that Juliya wasn’t looking at the precise moment that T’rid actually took care to oil exceptionally well.
The next emotion the bronze felt was relief as Juliya answered. Oh, good, they hadn’t fought. That’s good, he said, much more cheerfully now. And…ooh. Oh, dear. Ciceroth’s lied about their age? Why? I’m sorry, I don’t understand either… he faltered, pleased though he was to be singled out and told. …why does age bother him? Wouldn’t someone that’s older be more experienced? Ciceroth’s should be proud of being older than…say, T’rid. Right? That made sense to him…eh. Well, perhaps it was just Ciceroth’s being weird. Some people were, after all…You…he’s confused, Corinth explained slowly. Because, you see, sometimes he likes to act like a jerk and make people irritated and him…but he didn’t /mean/ to make /you/ angry…and he doesn’t want you to be angry at him, I don’t think. T’rid could be confusing sometimes, even when he was just thinking to himself. He was just…being himself…sarcastic, snarky, and…well, I don’t think he meant to make you angry, at any rate, Corinth finished.
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Post by glamourie on Oct 3, 2008 20:15:58 GMT -5
Hmph. Juliya tuned out T'rid; he wasn't hurting Eriannath and she was content, so there was no point in bickering with him anymore. Privately she was pleased with herself, as the bronzerider had stopped moping, whether he realized it or not. Whatever his problem was, it seemed to be gone in a fit of being ... well, bratty, which was a behavior she thoroughly expected from bronzeriders. Bratty and self-absorbed, she could deal with and even encouraged, privately. Her worry for his well-being was completely gone, along with any irritation she felt. At least he was acting more normal; or at least, from Corinth's behavior she assumed the brattiness was more normal for T'rid than the listless lethargy he'd earlier been displaying. And of course, the bronzerider would likely never realize that it was her who helped to distract him, even if said distraction did come in the form of annoying him.
Corinth had her full attention, and she replied with a surprising amount of sincerity, Because he has something to hide. He's lying about his age to cover something up. I don't understand why - and I don't know what it is he's trying to keep secret. But there is something. That's why people lie. To hide things. She sat up slightly and turned to look at the bronze, preferring to make eye contact (as much as she could) when she spoke to someone - be them dragon or person. It means there's something he really, really doesn't want people to know, but there's no way for someone like me to find out. Thus why she was telling Corinth. She had the distinct impression that T'rid would want that information and have no problem nosing about to find out what the secret was. It was also a lot harder to punish a bronzerider than it was a greenrider. She knew that for sure... from experience.
As for Corinth's explanation of how T'rid felt? Juliya was not entirely sure how to reply. She cast a half-glance toward the bronzerider before turning to address his dragon again, curiously. I'll get over it. She was puzzled by the idea of T'rid actually caring what she thought, and it showed on her face for a moment, before she turned to look at him.
Should she? Probably not. But --
"Does it really matter whether or not I'm angry at you, bronzerider?" she asked, as Eriannath crooned toward T'rid encouragingly. "I had the distinct impression you couldn't care less what some greenrider thought of you. Was I mistaken?" She sat up properly, then moved to sit on her knees, dusting her back off in the process. Grains of sand fell to the ground around her, and she ignored them, regarding T'rid with a very curious look. "Do you actually care?"
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Avu
Weyrleader Ce'thian Rider A'emi Handler Sena Harper Matteo Weyrbrat Riaren
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Post by Avu on Oct 4, 2008 11:09:20 GMT -5
T’rid had been gradually tuning out the world at large—or rather, he was specifically aiming to tune out Corinth, which resulted in basically cutting out everything except the job at hand. Oil. Rub. Spread. Oil. Rub. Rub. Angle. It was an easy motion—and a curious one, mostly because of Eriannath being Eriannath and not Corinth. When he moved the rag, he kept half-expecting to see bronze hide, instead of which he found green. It was…oddly fascinating. He was thinking of nothing in particular, but her greenness was…attention-grabbing. He reached up as far as he could, gingerly, to try to reach the center of Eriannath’s back—found it much easier a stretch than he’d anticipated—and teetered in slight surprise before regaining balance and tipping some more oil onto the rag. Oil. Rub. Rub. Rub. Rub…it was almost soothing, in a way, to do such a chore, to just let his mind blank out completely. Except, doing that meant he couldn’t block out Corinth as efficiently. I like it better when you’re relaxed. Don’t block me, the bronze mumbled. And he actually sounded sincere, too. Sorry. I won’t. He didn’t feel up to actually mentally blockading his thoughts against the bronze anyway.
The dragon was, thankfully for him, otherwise occupied for time being. It had never really occurred to him that the Weyrleader would have anything to hide—Ciceroth’s had the ultimate authority; all that could happen was that the public spirit turned against him, and quite frankly that wasn’t as horrible as it could be. The Weyr had to follow him, did it not? Lying was not new to Corinth, since His frequently did it, and he doubted many other people were truthful either, but that Ciceroth’s lied was startling. So he is pretending he was not born, or not old enough, at the time of…of /something/? In order to clear his name? That was silly. Nobody suspected Ciceroth’s of…treason…anyway, did they? Perhaps at Fort or Benden—he’d forgotten where Ciceroth’s was from—but so many people came from all over to Selenitas that he didn’t think the past really mattered to anybody but that person. I think that’s silly, Corinth commented, rather dubiously. Have you looked into it? Perhaps if Ciceroth’s wants to keep it a secret, you ought to let him keep it that way. He wasn’t one for poking into other dragons’ and peoples’ business if there was any way around it; intrusion of privacy was—well, Corinth certainly wouldn’t want anybody intruding upon his privacy, though there was little to hide; therefore, he tried not to venture upon anybody else’s.
He had closed his eyes by the time Juliya deigned to respond to his explanation on His, half-wondering if she was even going to answer. She’d…get over it? Eh. The bronze shrugged. He did his best to make sure T’rid didn’t get himself killed and didn’t enrage too many people, but it was a Sharding hard task and he was quite willing to take a break. Besides, the sun was very warm and it felt nice just to lay there, doing nothing in particular—even better that T’rid was working while he wasn’t. His second lid opened up sharply when Juliya spoke, fixing, not on the Greenrider, but on His.
T’rid, meanwhile, had been completely lost in…a lack of thoughts. He jumped slightly at her voice. “Eh? Oh, um.” He blinked, his face accurately depicting his confusion. Perhaps his acting skills weren’t as good as he’d thought if she could read him that easily. His thoughts never once flickered to Corinth—the bronze had, so far, stoutly refused to speak to any human save for himself, and, once, the Weyrwoman; why would he speak to Juliya? Of course, he hadn’t reckoned with her being an HAD. The Bronzerider blinked again, his arm stopping the circular rubbing motions on Eriannath’s hide as he regarded Juliya blankly. “What makes you ask that?” he asked, avoiding the question. Did some people not appreciate how hard it was to answer questions about how he felt? That was rather private. Just spit it out, and you’ve stopped oiling, Corinth told him. T’rid forced his arm to move again, his eyes flickering from Juliya to Eriannath.
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Post by glamourie on Oct 7, 2008 7:55:25 GMT -5
I'm not sure what the purpose of pretending he wasn't born was. I think - I don't know; he claims he was just out of Weyrling training when he transferred here. It makes me nervous. I don't have anyone else to talk to that I trust. She shrugged slightly with a glance at Corinth, but decided to drop the topic. She'd try again sometime - but it concerned her, mainly because Ciceroth flat out would not speak to her. There were very few dragons that pointedly snubbed her and he topped the list as the most fascinating. Much of that stemmed from Ciceroth being from Fort, and also being the Weyrleader's dragon, but the main reason was that he wasn't snobbish. She could hear when he spoke to other dragons and to His - and he wasn't snobby. He just flat out refused to speak to her and she didn't understand why. Smartly, she'd stopped trying to talk to him; she was worried he would tell his rider and she didn't trust Ka'rys any further than she could throw him. She remembered him from when she Impressed. Ironically, he claimed that Ciceroth was nine turns old. That would have made him from the same clutch as Eriannath. He had to have known that, too.
She let the topic go and instead stood up, then dusted herself off neatly. Eriannath crooned encouragingly to T'rid just as Corinth reminded him to keep oiling, and her eyes whirled playful whisps of blue-violet. Silly human, how he kept forgetting about her. A low rumble of amusement escaped her and she closed two of her eyelids in relaxation and contentment. Despite the blatant curiosity Hers felt where Ciceroth and His were concerned, Eriannath was in remarkably good spirits. She liked attention.
Folding her arms behind her back, Juliya regarded T'rid seriously. His question made the corners of her lips twitch and she slipped, soundlessly, across the sand before coming to a stop right next to T'rid. Her hand moved over to fold over his and move it to the side - out of the same spot and onto the green's flank, where it would have been better suited. "You've been oiling that spot for a few moments now; you can move on." Playfully nudging him, she released the bronzerider's hand and slipped over to stand next to Eriannath's head. The green moved and nudged her with blatant affection, and Juliya reached up to scratch her eyeridges in a similar show. When it came to the love she felt for her dragon, she had no shame. Shine was similar, although the brown had flitted off at some point to find more interesting companionship. Probably a nice green firelizard, knowing him.
T'rid's question threw her for a loop though and she smiled, looking down. A curtain of long brown hair fell over her face, sheltering it from view. "You should listen to Corinth. Just spit it out," she replied sweetly, choosing the bronze's exact words for emphasis. If T'rid couldn't catch what she meant by something that obvious then he didn't deserve to know. The fact was, she was trusting him with her deepest secret. And if T'rid told anyone? She'd punch his lights out. She was pretty sure he'd never see it coming anyway. I hope he doesn't tell, she added as an after thought, glancing at the bronze in question, as Eriannath crooned sweetly. I don't really like people knowing about this.
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Avu
Weyrleader Ce'thian Rider A'emi Handler Sena Harper Matteo Weyrbrat Riaren
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Post by Avu on Oct 7, 2008 16:53:38 GMT -5
Corinth couldn’t see at all why Ciceroth’s would lie about something as trivial as age. Nobody particularly cared about age that he knew of—T’rid didn’t count—and other than perhaps that Ciceroth’s was touchy about that, that was the only reason he could think of—the Weyrleader had something to hide. But still—Corinth was not unintelligent, but since the Weyrleader was the ultimate authority, it wouldn’t do any good to hoard secret suspicions against him. It was much simpler to just assume he was touchy or something of the like. You’ve talked to me, he pointed out, And I won’t tell anybody if you don’t want me to. Unless I don’t count, being draconic? he added, slightly amused by the thought. T’rid had already told him several times he “didn’t count” because he was His, after the bronze had offered his opinion on several things. That had miffed him slightly at first—he’d have thought his opinion on the trivial things T’rid had thought about would be important (but then he’d been in a hurry at the time and had only said what T’rid had wanted to hear, so perhaps it was right)—but he supposed most people didn’t think their dragons’ opinions counted.
“I’m oiling,” T’rid mumbled defensively—the comment was directed at both Eriannath and Corinth—and rubbed, although he really wasn’t into it; he was still too busy trying not to look startled by Juliya’s question. It had been completely and totally off-the-wall (to him); therefore, she should have his undivided attention. Except that he was otherwise occupied—that irritated him as he tilted the oil onto the rag and then rubbed again. Corinth rumbled in amusement as he sensed his Bonded’s confusion. How funny; he ought to talk to people more often just to see this reaction, no?
Despite the soundlessness of Juliya’s approach, T’rid had been glancing up as often as possible, trying to focus on Juliya, so the fact that she was near him wasn’t exactly surprising. He obediently moved his hand as she directed, still waiting on an answer to his question. For now, at least until she answered it, he would be a good little boy and do what she wanted, but if she dared pretend she hadn’t heard, he’d just tackle her and make her tell him. Yes, it irritated him greatly that someone would just know like that, without any apparent effort. It had never been so easy before, after all; he had gained control over his face nicely, thank you! Just keep oiling, Corinth pressed, as T’rid rubbed, his eyes following Juliya as she moved around to Eriannath’s head and rubbed her.
His eyes narrowed as her hair fell in front of her face—no doubt hiding a smirk, he thought a bit resentfully. T’rid couldn’t keep his eyes from widening, though, as her answer reached him; he all but choked. Listen to Corinth. I like that idea; you don’t do it nearly often enough, Corinth said cheerfully. You—you—you and—why didn’t you /tell/ me, Shardit? The bronze rumbled, amusement lacing his mental tones. What fun is there in that? And why did you tell her about how I /felt/? Do you honestly think I would /approve/? I told her because you were being an idiot and needed help, and /you/ don’t /need/ to approve, Corinth replied. “I—how—Um. Yes, I care?” It was more a question than anything else; T’rid blinked uncertainly. I won’t let him tell anybody, Corinth assured Juliya, although his eyes flashed in amusement again. You certainly caught him off guard with that.
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Post by glamourie on Oct 10, 2008 8:03:59 GMT -5
Anyone else, I said, Juliya teased in response. She didn't trust anyone human. It wasn't personal but living in the north had given her quite the jaded view of people as a rule. They couldn't be trusted, they always betrayed one another. Dragons were usually more reasonable. When they acted out, it was because their rider was a jerk, not them; they followed the lead of their human counterpart. It was easier to forgive someone or something for being nasty if she could find some reason to make it not their fault. Since she could - to some degree - feel the emotions of other dragons, it was fairly obvious that she would always side with them over humans. That and, frankly, no dragon had ever hurt her, ever made her cry, ever made her lose hope. Humans did that on a regular basis where she came from. Was it any wonder that of all the people at Selenitas, she confided in Corinth, and no one else? I trust you. I don't trust very many. You seem like you're trust-worthy, though. Pause, then -- You did seem to find it amusing when I stepped on T'rid's foot, after all.
Still her fingers moved over Eriannath's nose, and the green crooned lovingly to her before rumbling her pleasure to T'rid; it was fairly obvious that for all of his attitude, he was making her very happy. Not that it was expressly difficult to please Eriannath, but that was a fact nonetheless: she liked the attention and he wasn't slacking by any means. Although, he was obviously distracted, but that was okay. She crooned pleasantly at his acknowledgment, but otherwise did not reply. It was clear that he and Hers were distracted with one another and she vaguely considered acting on the idea of hurling them both into the water. Wouldn't they feel better after a dip?
Juliya, on the other hand, was quite amused by T'rid's blatant surprise. She managed (with some effort) to hide that expression from her face, but oh was it tempting to tease him. That wasn't entirely fair. Blindsiding him with something so out of the blue meant she had to give him a little leeway and besides, it sounded as though Corinth was doing enough teasing for the both of them. If he'd been human, she definitely would have asked that bronze to the next Gather with her. Shame his rider wasn't half as pleasant as he was, though. No, T'rid reminded her more of a spoiled child. Pity. That thought was pushed aside as she stepped around Eriannath, moving to stand toe-to-toe with the bronzerider. "You should really learn to show that better. You come across like a sulking, brooding child, possibly spoiled, definitely in need of a good spanking," she commented, with a wry edge to her voice that alluded to something more. "Even when you're not trying to. Not the best attitude to present, it makes you seem younger than you are. About fourteen, I'd wager."
Corinth's response amused her, though she couldn't say why. Before I left Fort, there was a girl there. A girl like me. She was open about it - told everyone. Very proud of being able to hear and speak to all dragons. She was set to Stand at one of Grenostith's clutches, and then she fell ill and died - about a tenday before the hatching. I found out that she was poisoned. Poisoned by the Weyrwoman. I can only assume she felt threatened, she explained, a hint of trepidation in her 'voice' despite her efforts to hide it. I don't tell anyone. T'rid is the first human - of all the people I've met in my entire life - who knows now what I can do. I hope he does keep it a secret. I don't fancy the idea of being poisoned.
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Avu
Weyrleader Ce'thian Rider A'emi Handler Sena Harper Matteo Weyrbrat Riaren
Posts: 2,439
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Post by Avu on Oct 10, 2008 15:55:09 GMT -5
Emphasis on 'else.' All right...the bronze had been focusing mainly on the meanings of Juliya's words, and therefore had missed the trivial point, but that was all right. She'd pointed it out, and he was all right with that. So he was the only one. Other than, obviously, Eriannath? Corinth rumbled, pleased and a bit flattered. It was nice to know somebody trusted you, no? Especially when they scarcely had spoken to you before, if at all? (He couldn't remember speaking to Juliya before, but then again he didn't remember much, so that was no surprise.) Fair enough, he agreed, rolling over absently to get the full benefit of the sun on his side, resembling nothing more in the world than a giant kitten. Juliya's next comment elicited an amused croon. I don't usually remember things long enough to start rumors about them, he pointed out wryly, But thank you, anyways. He flicked one eyelid sleepily open, amused again. Yes, he had thought it funny when T'rid had been...stepped on...but that was hardly his fault. Normally he was the only one to take down the Bronzerider's arrogance and it made a lovely change to be a bystander instead of involved in it all. Did I? was the phrase he settled for, a slightly smug note entering his tone.
She was...pleased. T'rid blinked, eloquently displaying his surprise. A surprising, surprising Greenpair - that was what they were. First Juliya popped up as an HAD, and Eriannath - she was so lax. Greens generally weren't, from what T'rid could tell - Reysalth, Calistoth, even Aonith - they definitely weren't so easily pleased. Corinth perhaps could tame them, but then he adored greens. No green had ever been so...happy...around him before without Corinth chatting with her - Faranth. This had to be some sort of new record. That in thought, he absently smoothed her hide with one palm, successfully smearing oil all over his palm as he rubbed oil into her hide, taking a step sideways for a new spot. So...much...green.
The Bronzerider was doing his best to ignore the fact that Juliya was probably laughing fit to burst on the inside. It irritated him, Shardit, and naturally she would find it amusing after his snarkiness, but still. She couldn't honestly think that she could tell him something like that and have him not goggle for a while before managing to swallow it, did she? You could stop blinking, for a start, or you might give her the impression you have something in your eye, Corinth remarked happily. I'm not blinking....am I? T'rid made an effort to stop. You aren't now. Good boy. T'rid resisted the almost overpowering urge to throw a stick or something at the bronze. Barely. He did try to ignore Corinth as Juliya started talking, though, after closing the space between them. "Right, I'll make a note on that," he responded with mock sweetness, wrinkling his nose. As his age was commented on, the urge to throw something at Corinth was replaced by the desire to stick out his tongue at her, just to prove how childish he could be. But that probably wouldn't help any. "Thank you. Now that the critics have been heard from...?"
Corinth had fallen silent after chortling slightly at T'rid, although his eyes were now entirely open as he watched His - and then flickered to Juliya as she spoke again, listening quietly, although a shade of alarm pervaded the blue-green mist as she finished. She suspected that...what? As long as she was senior queen, she still would be Weyrleader, no? And unless the girl was particularly power-hungry, surely she wouldn't have killed Grenostith's? That would be bad...very bad...for both the Weyr and for her own reputation. At least, it would be in Selenitas; he wasn't entirely sure about Fort. Fort Weyr wasn't as bad as Benden, was it...? He won't tell anybody, he's still too busy trying to process it himself, Corinth assured Juliya, And besides, he's not the type to go blabbering about anything, although he does like to know things.
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