Misadventures in Flightlust [Fade-in for Req]

[Avu]

T’rid was convinced that his normal dreams did not consist of graphic (if pleasing) details, proddy greens, and Laurie, whom he barely knew anyway. But this dream had been very vivid and enjoyable, aside from the jealousy he’d felt when his dream-Laurie touched his dream-competitors. Then he wondered vaguely why he was even thinking about this. It was just a dream, right? He sighed contentedly anyways. It had been such a nice dream…he froze. His dream’s details must have been very, very vivid because he seemed to be having an aftermath of sorts.

He kept his eyes closed as he tried to figure out where each limb and part of his body was. Okay. His dream must have been affecting his mind…because he still seemed to be tangled around someone. Dream-Laurie, it felt like…but he couldn’t be sure. Of course he was just imagining things anyway. When he woke up, T’rid told himself, he was going to find himself hugging Corinth’s tail or something, and he would be embarrassed and Corinth would laugh and…but…but…

It felt so very much like a person.

Aren’t you proud of me, T’ridmine? Corinth mumbled indistinctly. What for? It did feel nice, so T’rid had decided he was just going to live with his strange dream for as long as possible, until the fake feeling faded entirely and it was just a dream, just a thing of the past, not real. Well, seeing as you haven’t bolted yet, the bronze answered, a bit confused, I would assume that you are pleased…

Bolted? From what?

Then he froze, his sleepy mind finally putting together the kinks. Dream. Not a dream. Not a dream-Laurie, a real Laurie, and a real Corinth still sleeping with a real Reysalth and a real Flightroom with him, a real T’rid, not a dream one, still inside of it with a real Laurie and…

Oh, Faranth.

He carefully opened one eye, glancing down. What met his eyes was both very nice and desirable and rather embarrassing at the same time. And here he had been, acting like a nice little dolt and thinking it had been a dream. You are pleased? Corinth pressed. Um, yes. Should I know Laurie? he added, trying to recall if they’d met before. Well, I do think she’s S’rei’s sister, came the gradually more indistinct response. T’rid could feel the bronze’s desire to go back to sleep.

Oh. Oh. Oh. That was not very good. T’rid sighed, wondering if it’d be best to untwine himself from Laurie and bolt, but she’d know who Flew her anyway. And hopefully, S’rei was not the type to panic or fret about who Flew his sister. And if he was angry at T’rid, well…well…his brain went numb. What’s wrong? Corinth asked reluctantly. S’rei! T’rid managed. …? He got a questioning feeling in response. He won’t murder me for Flying Laurie, will he? T’rid asked faintly.

He was bid not to be silly and to leave Corinth alone. Corinth wished to sleep with Reysalth, please and thanks. So T’rid resigned himself to staying, passing time by admiring Laurie. He had to admit, Corinth couldn’t have chosen a much better green to Fly. At least Laurie seemed to have been accepting of the Flight, if his details on what she had (or rather, hadn’t) worn were correct. So she hopefully wouldn’t panic on him…

Now all he had to do was wait.

Whoever said that was easy should be sat upon by a dragon.

[reqqy]

The woman stirred in her sleep, nestling closer to T'rid and...well, suffice it to say that she was having a rather vivid dream as an offshoot of the Flight, and Laurie wasn't any less forward in her dreams than she was in real life. Her hand curled around him, the greenrider kissing sloppily at his chest before she settled again, her grip loosening but the hand still in a very - inconvenient - spot for him. Or maybe not so inconvenient, depending upon how the bronzerider perceived things.

Reysalth herself had been awake for awhile yet, though she had absolutely no desire to move from the weyrledge she now occupied with Corinth. The green was quite simply staring at him at the moment, a tad perplexed. She typically liked experienced browns. How had she ended up with a bronze who was practically a hatchling compared to her? Oh, he was pretty enough in his own right, and she did remember her anger at Styth. It wasn't that she regretted her choice. Corinth was simply such a departure from the norm that it had her rather sober - which wasn't at all diminished by the fact that she felt well-satisfied at the moment. He'd been a good Flightpartner.

Experimentally, she let her head fall upon his flank again. He didn't feel much different than one of her browns, when all was said and done. Warm. Firm, but soft. Reysalth listened to the breaths, knowing he wasn't asleep, but also able to tell he wasn't fully awake, either, which was fine by her since she was currently satisfying her curiosity. Wriggling a little, she snuggled further into him and closed her eyes. No, not much different at all. You couldn't even tell he was a bronze with your eyes closed.

She wasn't sure if that meant she should pretend Corinth was a brown, or that a bronze wasn't so bad - if he were the right bronze. Well, it was kind of silly to focus on that, wasn't it? He was warm and a nice pillow, and she really was rather weary from her flight, so now would be a good time just to accept the whole thing for what it was and let him coddle her a little.

Again, the greenrider stirred, muttering something incomprehensible and tightening her leg around one of T'rid's. Her eyelids fluttered open, Laurie blinking slowly at him. "Hi, pup," she commented in a low, quiet tone, sleepiness lacing the words liberally. She'd been in enough Flights that it generally was hard to shock her - especially since Reysalth wasn't what you'd call a consistent creature. As her mind cleared more, she chuckled wryly. "F'rah will be frantic about now. Oh well. He can wait just a bit, since it makes no sense to be in a hurry to get away from handsome, strapping youths. I suppose you don't have any friends who would like to join in the fun?" The woman winked broadly.

Nor did she seem at all uncomfortable to be lying naked with a near-stranger who just so happened to be her brother's second. S'rei was just as blase about Flights as Laurie was, although they'd both probably get a good laugh out of this one. She hoped so, at least; the man had been entirely too serious as of late.

Only at this point did she notice that she still had ahold of him, which caused her to laugh and let go. "My, you'd think I hadn't just been Flown, wouldn't you? I do hope you don't think I'm quite as desperate as all that, pup." Lauranna shifted so she was lying squarely on top of his chest, her chin on her hands, grinning up at T'rid with a decidedly youthful expression. "Well? Was it what you hoped?"

You're awake, aren't you? Reysalth prompted Corinth gently.

[Avu]

She was awake. Or maybe not…T’rid felt the muscles in his chest tighten automatically as she kissed him and shifted, her hand falling in a rather private area. T’rid jumped as well as he could lying down, his breath hissing out from between his teeth as he tried to ease Laurie’s arm away from said area without stirring the rest of her too much, at the same time sliding sideways. It didn’t work out, seeing as he was also trying not to wake her up. He groaned under his breath, giving up, although the urge to leave was growing slightly stronger.

Corinth sighed, still partially asleep, as Reysalth moved closer to him, and then heard a flash of T’rid’s thoughts. Don’t go, he mumbled blearily, having all but fallen asleep again. T’rid exhaled slowly. It seemed a bit wrong to disturb Laurie from her sleep right now anyway; even more so to make Corinth stir himself and leave Reysalth. The bronze was quite content and making him do anything felt a bit cruel.

Oh, she was awake now. T’rid, whose gaze had fallen onto the ceiling at random, lowered his eyes to meet Laurie’s as she stirred, this time actually awakening. “Hi, pup.” Pup? Was that all he was to her? A ‘pup’? Admittedly he was young, but so what? Did age really matter that much? Well, whatever. It wasn’t like she had to like him or vice versa anyways. This was the ideal time for saying ‘Hi, bye,’ and bolting, but she had only tightened herself around him as she’d woken, so T’rid was trapped for time being.

T’rid loosened his arms from Laurie’s waist and stretched, grateful that he could move again. “My name’s T’rid,” he offered, stifling another yawn and the urge to collapse in sleep again. “Hullo, Lauranna.” It felt a bit odd to be addressing her by her full name, as in his mind he had already been calling her by ‘Laurie,’ but she hadn’t asked him to call her that yet. The last thing he needed right now was to be whacked for being too forward or something. (As if that hadn’t already been done for him.)

F’rah? T’rid blinked, trying to remember. F’rah…was…? He was sure he’d heard the man’s name before. Somewhere…the aftereffects of the Flight still clouded his mind and he didn’t answer that. F’rah was probably an admirer or a Weyrmate, Weyrmate being the more likely of the two. So, then…friends who’d like to join? That was a bit…

‘Different’ was a safe word to use. “I wouldn’t know, seeing as you’ve got me pinned down,” he answered, still a bit groggy. Lying in a soft bed with someone else pressed against you did that. He inhaled deeply, closing his eyes for a moment, like an extra-long blink. What did people usually talk about when they woke up after Flights? Other than ‘good morning’ and ‘are you okay?’ Seeing as Laurie seemed to be quite playful, he could assume the answer to ‘are you okay?’ would be ‘yes.’

You could ask her anyway, mumbled Corinth, still sleepy. T’rid ignored him and focused what remained of his attention on Laurie. ‘Pup’ again. Was he really that young? The answer to that was yes, but T’rid didn’t need to be reminded. “T’rid,” he corrected her, keeping still as she shifted on top of him. So much for running away. He should’ve done that when he’d had the chance if he really wanted to.

What had he expected from a Flight? He did a double-take. Did anyone really expect anything from Flights? Flights were crazy. Completely spontaneous and wild and lustful and…well, pleasurable. But then, he hadn’t really expected Corinth to win. Sure, the bronze was small. Agile. But to catch a green had been, so far, beyond the bronze and he hadn’t expected it to change with a more experienced dragon like Reysalth. “Actually, it wasn’t,” he admitted, “because I expected that Corinth would be rejected.” As usual. Only then did T’rid realized he’d been released, and he stifled a relieved sigh, pressing his teeth together. He didn’t need it to be taken the wrong way.

The bronze sighed as the green brushed his mind, resigned to staying awake now. His sleep had been so pleasurable. Yes, he agreed, lifting his head and craning it to look over his Flightpartner. I’m awake. He paused, considering. You flew well, he offered.

[reqqy]

Silly thing. He didn't think she knew what his name was? Lauranna had a few turns under her belt, but she wasn't old enough to be forgetting details like that just yet. "You're Rei's second," she added quietly, smiling at him. "Almost as old as my Wingleader. Now isn't that rather amusing? I always think it's funny to watch the blind leading the blind." Was she being insulting? Not intentionally, although one could blame her lack of wakefulness for the rather tactless comment.

Pinned down? Blinking some of the sleepiness from her eyes, Laurie couldn't resist a titter. She liked 'em pinned down - though preferably writhing beneath her attentions. Not that she didn't mind the situation reversed...Pondering T'rid for a moment, she wondered if she could get away with a little - teasing. But even Lauranna knew better than to start feeling people up when she was naked as the day she was born and not intending on following through.

"Don't like being pinned down, do you, bronzer? Or is it tied down?" Of course he could always move her if he so desired. Laurie was tiny, and not very heavy, either. There he went with the T'rid thing again. Did it really bother him to be called 'pup'? The greenrider pulled a mild frown at him. Spoilsport. He probably thinks you're robbing him of his 'maleness.' Oh, fiddlesticks. When did bronzeriders get so insecure? I just think he's young and cute. Try cuteness instead of pup? I'm sure that would go over well.

"T'rid's such a harsh name. But if you call me Laurie, I'll call you something nice and mannish, like...ummm...like..." Oh dear. Now she couldn't think of anything. Help! You didn't like my suggestion. Ask someone else. Psht. Cuteness isn't manly! Reysalth pointedly ignored her, and the greenrider shook her head. "I'll come up with something; don't you worry." This last was punctuated by a sheepish grin.

Lauranna shook her head, chuckling as she extended an arm to flick him lightly along the jaw. "I didn't ask what you expected, hun. If Corinth had expected to catch my lovely, he wouldn't have. She's not too fond of males who are full of themselves." That statement held an obvious trace of affection for her bonded. Settling herself more firmly against him with a little wriggle, she continued, "No, I asked you if it was what you hoped. Be a dear and give an old woman a little validation." Laurie stuck out her tongue at him, then, seriously considering licking his chest just to see him squirm, but settling for running it over her lips instead.

Reysalth regarded him narrowly, not particularly pleased. She didn't expect a ton of praise and affection, but the least he could do was not sound utterly bored. Stupid bronzes. I've been flying for over twice as long as you've been alive, so I should certainly hope so, the green responded coolly. Corinth had made no move to leave earlier, and Reysalth was not about to let him leave her to a cold, hard weyrledge, if only out of pure spite. If it inconvenienced him, so much the better.

I'd hate to interrupt your all-important nap. Please, by all means, don't stay awake on my account. How cruel of me to interrupt. And here she'd thought that maybe a bronze wasn't the worst thing? She must have been quite out of her head at the time.

[Avu]

Rei? It took T’rid a second to realize she meant S’rei. The fact that she’d mentioned his rank helped, too. He had to grin at the idea of calling ever-so-serious S’rei by a nickname like ‘Rei.’ He blinked, still rather sleepy. It took him a while to wake up every morning, Corinth even longer. He was used to it. What he wasn’t used to was having to think first thing in the morning. “’Rei’,” he repeated. “That’s such a lovely nickname.” Her…‘blind’ comment wasn’t lost on him, although T’rid figured that seeing as he had been her Flightpartner, he’d have to be a little looser. “Amusing—yes, that’s exactly what I was thinking.”

He turned his head sideways, trying to see if Corinth was ready to go, but couldn’t quite see more than the tip of the bronze’s tail. Ah well…turning his head back, T’rid realized that Laurie seemed to be—considering him, as if thinking about something. Which made him rather uncomfortable in itself. Deciding to pretend he’d noticed nothing, instead of his normal response, which would be to cough and ease away pointedly—a difficult feat when he was under someone rather than next to them—he glanced back at Corinth’s tail-tip. It hadn’t moved—how exciting.

Raising one hand to rub his eye, T’rid shrugged, a suggestion of a grin flickering across his face. “Do you like being pinned down? If you don’t mind it, then I won’t say anything about it.” Of course she could just lie to make it go whichever way she wanted, but right now, T’rid was beyond caring. He was comfortable where he was, and Laurie didn’t weigh too much. If she decided to get off, that’d be fine, and if she decided to stay where she was, that would be just fine, too. The frown didn’t quite register, as he shifted slightly to navigate one leg around a lump in the furs while still trying to move as little as possible at exactly the moment Laurie decided to frown.

T’rid, a harsh name? He quirked one brow, amused. He hadn’t really thought of it as harsh or not—it was just his name. And a far better name than ‘pup.’ He really couldn’t see the likeness between a squirming, repulsive ball of fur and himself, except of course the reference to age. “’Laurie’ I can deal with,” he agreed, and grinned wryly at her loss of words. “While you’re debating, I do prefer T’rid over ‘pup’.”

The Bronzerider shifted again experimentally, and had his attention drawn instantly back to Laurie when she flicked him. Wow, what a tender gesture. “Hmm, well. She should see him normally when he’s deciding how many times I should oil him, and then decide whether or not he’s full of himself.” He rolled his eyes, feeling Corinth’s mental protest at that. What he’d hoped was not much different from what he’d expected, with the exception that he’d hoped that Corinth wouldn’t be upset after the Flight was over. He’d expected the bronze to mope a little bit. He doubted that was what Laurie was looking for, though. No, she probably wanted something a lot more forward. Which was rather awkward…

“Um, I hoped Reysalth wouldn’t eat him?” he offered teasingly, and then rolled his eyes. “I didn’t really have much time to figure out what I hoped before he took off. Let’s just say I’m…more satisfied…than I’d hoped to be.” That was basically true—maybe a little on the vague side, but Laurie was free to make her own interpretations if she wanted to. His mind was still half-asleep, and Laurie was not helping matters by displaying her tongue and lips so openly.

Corinth, like his Bonded, was still trying to sort out his mind, but he still was awake enough to realize something—perhaps his words, perhaps his tone—had offended Reysalth. It’d have to take an idiot not to figure that one out. Sorry, he said, flicking his eyelids a few times and rumbling apologetically. I didn’t mean to offend you—I just take a while to wake up entirely. Honesty was always best, and he was still a bit too sleepy to figure out a complex, believable lie anyway.

He added, If you’d rather I left, I won’t intrude on you any more. Another blink, still a bit confused and sleepy, but his words were true enough. If Reysalth decided to kick him off, he would go without being bitter about it. T’rid was ready to leave at any time, and Corinth doubted T’rid was going to throw a fit at the idea of going back to sleep, which would be what he’d do if Corinth took him back to their Weyr.

[reqqy]

"I think so, too," Lauranna responded cheerfully. "He used to be Silas, then S'las, but that was nearly fifteen turns ago now. Fifteen? Yes, almost. Anyway, Si wasn't a bad nickname, but Rei is much better. I don't know who decided to give him that name at Healer Hall, but I'm grateful. It's ever so annoying not to have a good nickname for him when everyone always shortens my name and he calls me Pixie. Fair is fair, yes?" Talkative much? Oh yes. Laurie was a morning person, and that truth came across fairly strongly.

Not once did she consider that S'rei may not want her spouting off his strange back history. After all, most Fort transfers were aware of the 'traitor' that gave Benden their edge, and a lot of the Selenitas-bred at least knew of D'vo and Vani and - by extension - their children, particularly the one who had served as Weyrleader after Aslath's maiden Flight. She wouldn't think that anyone might be surprised by what she'd just said. Not for a moment.

The greenrider regarded T'rid narrowly. That sounded suspiciously like sarcasm there, didn't it? Oh, she thought so. Luckily, he distracted her with his next question, and the woman giggled. "Do I like being pinned down? Depends on the situation." Laurie threw him a sultry wink, shifting a little to find a more comfortable position on his chest. She liked being there, truly. Nothing like a decent-sized male's chest for a bed - even if said male was a youngling.

"Sorry, lovely," the greenrider replied, genuinely mollified. "I just thought it was better than boy. You have to be about half my age, I'd guess." Screwing up her face, it was pretty clear that the woman was thinking very, very hard. Careful. Your head might explode if you think much harder. Oh, poo. Suddenly Lauranna's face lit up. "How 'bout sport? Is that better?"

Mild confusion flitted behind her green eyes. "Oh dear. Reys was taken with him, I believe, because he was willing to abuse himself to catch her. (Even though she doesn't think that's a particularly smart thing for him to do.) But she's not physically violent. Much. Okay, a little." Laurie snickered. "Just in Flight, I suppose."

Lifting up slightly on an elbow, she shifted her legs. "You thought you wouldn't be here, no?" Her hand slid up his chest lingeringly. "Well, with Reysalth, you never know. I've gotten used to her by now. Though you'd best be a little more careful with your words, sport. Not too flattering to be considered a better partner than no partner at all." She offered him a mock frown to go along with the statement, though her hand still stroked his chest absently.

Reysalth was still bristling a bit, though his apology did help. The green liked to cuddle after a Flight. She liked it warm and cozy when she was achy and tired. Nor did she think it entirely fair for a male to earn the right to Fly her, only to scurry off the moment he had a chance. No, she didn't know Corinth very well at all, even if he'd been around several turns now, but she thought he at least owed her that much. She could have easily picked someone else, right?

I'd prefer it if you'd stay, though I won't stop you if you're intent on fleeing. Reysalth let out a soft hiss of annoyance. I suppose I was a little quick to take offense, myself. You're just the first bronze I've let Fly me, so I'm more sensitive than normal. That was perhaps more open than she usually was, but he'd been forthright, so she figured she owed him the same courtesy. On that thought, she remembered why, her mindtone taking on a touch of worry. Your wings. They're all right, aren't they?

[Avu]

T’rid wasn’t being entirely sarcastic when he’d said connected “Rei” to “lovely,” but he hadn’t been exactly serious either. He grinned, raising an eyebrow. “And if I were to call him that, d’you think he’d mind? Or would he ask Salenth to sit on me?” Silas…T’rid had never heard anyone call S’rei that before, but if it was fifteen Turns previously or along those timelines, he wouldn’t have been more than a few Turns old. So. That would explain it nicely. “Mm. My compliments to whoever named him that, then,” he offered, grinning.

I won’t stop you from being sat on, you know, Corinth warned sharply. T’rid ignored them, busy making himself look innocent in response to Laurie’s stare. He considered her answer, which seemed truthful enough as opposed to a blatant lie to make him stop complaining. “Oh? And suppose the situation is this one, just reversed—comfortable or no?” he asked, squirming as she shifted on top of him. Just because he wasn’t being controlled by Flightlust at time being didn’t mean he wasn’t male, and this whole lying-on-top-of-him, moving-every-so-often idea wasn’t exactly helping.

Boy vs. Pup. Wow, that was some competition there. “At least ‘boy’ sounds reasonably human,” he answered, chuckling despite himself. At her reference to age, he blinked again. Okay, he was youngish. Point being? People didn’t really have much of a decision as to when they were born, did they now? Maybe you should draw on some wrinkles, Corinth suggested, and T’rid thought that he heard a snicker.

He waited patiently as she thought, although what she came up with he wasn’t quite sure about either. Sport—well, maybe. It seemed about the best offer he’d get. T’rid pretended to consider, pursing his lips thoughtfully, rolling his eyes upwards (he succeeded in noticing the bed-frame was dark brown in color). “Mm…all right. Sport. I’ll take it,” he agreed, nodding diplomatically.

Abuse himself? T’rid stared, confused, at Laurie. He remembered a certain bronze barging through the trees, sure, but he’d been under the impression he’d done fairly well at not running right into trees. You didn’t run into any trees, did you? he added sharply. Go away, mumbled Corinth. T’rid sighed. He’d bug the bronze later about Flight tactics. For now…“Well, it worked, so unless you can think of a really good argument for me to present to him later about how doing that isn’t smart, I think we’re going to be seeing a lot more of that.” Stupid arrogant bronze…he sent a wave of annoyance and was countered by a wave of smugness.

T’rid exhaled lightly as she shifted again. And ran her hand up his chest. She was making him too comfortable right now—physically, anyway. He grinned at her suggestion. What about Flightmoths? He would’ve ended up with someone even if Reysalth hadn’t Chosen Corinth; Corinth would just be a lot grumpier right about now. “I’d have had a partner anyway,” he pointed out. “Like every other person who participated—although I assume you are more experienced, aren’t you?” His eyebrow rose wryly. Greens and their busy Rising schedule…

Of course I don’t want to leave you, Corinth protested, crooning softly. But I wouldn’t impose myself on you if you didn’t want me. He was grateful that she’d been straightforward with him, although her comment was rather surprising. If he hadn’t been intent on not accidentally insulting her again, he would’ve asked if Reysalth had anything against bronzes, but decided not to. We’ll both need to adjust, won’t we? he offered softly. He certainly would have to watch his tongue.

Wings? The bronze blinked, briefly bewildered, and then remembered. Ah. He stretched one experimentally, taking care not to shift Reysalth more than was necessary. I’ve had worse, he decided thoughtfully. Most of the wounds were shallow scrapes and cuts, that would heal in less than a sevenday, with or without numbweed. It doesn’t hurt that badly. At least, not now they don’t…

[reqqy]

Laurie wrinkled her nose at the boy. "You're his second, T'rid, though I wouldn't be pushing his patience until he's in a better mood." That was definitely - sound advice. After all, S'rei looked like he had a foot in the grave as of late, though of course he was just fine. Sleep-deprived and half-starving himself, but fine. Normally, Lauranna would be riding the man pretty hard for neglecting himself like that, but she was positive it had everything to do with Shmee and the man wouldn't be listening to her at all. Depressed, clearly. No, not exactly a good time to test how far you could push him.

"Although he won't need to ask Salenth to sit on you," she added, teasingly. "S'rei's quite capable of batting you around a bit himself if you get out of line. Just do me a favor, yes? Tell me when you plan to use the name so I can watch the fun!" No, this bronzerider wasn't small, but he was just a teenager, and a Selenitas-bred teenager, at that. Her brother was a man who'd spent about equal time at all the weyrs on Pern - aside from the newly formed High Reaches - and she was pretty sure that he'd been at each weyr at least as long as T'rid had been a rider. He was a man in his prime with ample northern training to draw on. That wasn't the sort of man you wanted to mess with.

Even if he did more resemble a giant teddybear (at least in Laurie's eyes) than anything else.

Cheeky child! Lauranna pulled a face. "Unless you had a very good reason for being on my chest, bronzerider, I imagine it would not be so comfortable. But, really, you're at least twice my size, so I don't see how that's even comparable." The greenrider sniffed pointedly. He'd best not suggest otherwise, either. Laurie was generally laidback, but she was about as volatile as any woman should a man suggest she was heavy.

Letting out a soft sigh, Lauranna snuggled with T'rid a little more, but she was definitely beginning to think that, amusing as this conversation was, she'd like to find F'rah. He was much more accomodating. What was so wrong with a little cuddling, anyway? Then again, if she worked herself up, she had a mate to go back to and seduce. Who knew about this p- Oh, she'd best stop thinking of him that way in her head, or it would pop out of her mouth again.

"Human? You have an aversion to names that don't sound human? That's a weird quirk to have," Laurie commented, amused, though she was glad he was accepting of 'sport.' The woman generally didn't call riders by their honoraries. It was too removed, and she was genuinely not someone who liked formality in the slightest. F'rah was Rah! And S'rei was Rei. Rah Rei, Rei Rah. You're going to give me a headache with all that excessive happiness, Reysalth interjected grumpily. Sourpuss. Enjoy your male and be quiet. She could hear her green's annoyed rumble from here.

He didn't know? She cocked her head to one side mildly. Some people just got completely lost in Flightlust, it seemed. Laurie was effected, but she rarely was unaware of the more important details, particularly those things that led to Reysalth's end choice. And she'd definitely know if Reys had managed to hurt herself in her Flight. "That's simple enough. Reysalth chose him because he was willing to go to such lengths for her, but all it would take is a slight miscalculation, and I can guarantee you no green would allow a dragon who couldn't keep up because he banged himself up too bad to catch her. It worked this time, but I wouldn't expect it to work again."

Sniffing at his impudence, Laurie rolled off him and onto her back at his side. "You really ought to learn how to talk to people, sport. Someone else might have slapped you for that comment. In fact, I'm still considering it. Women don't generally take such suggestions well."

Reysalth was mollified just a bit that Corinth wasn't in a hurry to shove off. Of course, that might just be what he said, since she'd almost certainly be quite upset at him for a time if he indicated he didn't want to be around her. Still, it ended with the same result, which meant she was moderately appeased. Yes, I think so. Oblivious to any questions he might have about her earlier comment, she burrowed into his side somewhat possessively.

A touch of affection actually came into her tone, though the words were clearly meant to scold. That wasn't a very good idea, Corinth. I'm glad you're not badly hurt - it would make me feel absolutely terrible if you were - but a Flight isn't worth tearing your wings up over. Any Flight, but certainly not mine. I go into the trees for the express purpose that most can't follow me, and I don't expect the larger dragons to try.

[Avu]

Laurie’s advice was probably unneeded—T’rid wasn’t as stupid as that. Although—okay, well, maybe he would call S’rei ‘Rei’ if—but only if—the man seemed to be in a looser mood. Possibly. Maybe. If Corinth didn’t tell him to shut up for his life or something like that. “Is he normally in a better mood?” he asked, amused. He hadn’t really talked to S’rei before becoming his Wingsecond—part of the reason the sudden promotion had bewildered him—other than a possible polite greeting, if that. It was no fun if he was always incredibly solemn and boring, though, was it? He had to be spastic and weird sometimes. Most people had those times once in a while, didn’t they?

Mm. It figured that S’rei was adept at fighting. Well, T’rid wasn’t exactly helpless either. When you got into as many fights as he did at Selenitas Hold, you either learned to fight or you got very, very bruised, cut, scraped, etc. And T’rid was not the type, even when he had been younger, to accept beatings even if he did deserve them. “I’ll have Corinth alert Reysalth,” he promised, grinning. “At least maybe you can stop him from murdering me if he takes the notion to mind, hmm?” That’s such an idiotic idea it has to be a first even for you, Corinth growled. Oh, wasn’t he encouraging?

Of course the bronzerider hadn’t heard the double-meaning to his words until Laurie pointed it out. Go figure—of course she’d automatically think of weight. Pfft. “Not what I meant,” he countered, his smile amused now. “I actually was thinking more along the lines of if our positions were entirely reversed—weights included.” She didn’t need to take offense—really, did she think he’d be as stupid as to go and bug someone about their weight? Especially a woman who had just…indulged him? No. Even T’rid knew his limits.

Ohh-kay. Snuggling again? It was comfortable, yes, but also—well, most Greenriders, after a Flight, from what T’rid knew, got up and yelled for a few minutes, were sentimental for a few more, and then left. So this was slightly odd. But hey—if she wanted to snuggle—and now he was quite sure she wasn’t just doing so accidentally—that was fine, too. He sighed, closing his eyes and enjoying it. He still was moderately sleepy, and considered that, when he got back to his own Weyr, collapsing into sleep again rather than being a busybody and getting up to work. Work was no fun…

T’rid raised his eyebrow at the idea of someone liking names that didn’t sound human. “As opposed to liking names like ‘feline’?” he asked wryly. That was an…odd…idea. “I think it’d be a little odder if I liked names that made me sound like I was a fire lizard or a kitten or something.” He shuddered at the idea, rolling his eyes emphatically. Fire lizards, kittens—not good. Therefore, being related to said kitten or fire lizard was not high on his list of things I like.

Corinth rumbled indignantly outside. My eyesight and reaction are better than that, he sniffed. “He declares he would not bang himself up too badly to fly,” T’rid recited, rolling his eyes. “Stubborn idiot.” Really, what bronze liked greens so much that they’d hurt themselves just to get half a decent chance at flying them? How silly—how very silly. Well, Corinth was just a silly little bronze if he thought Flying greens was all-important. He’d ditch them fast enough when a queen Rose.

Laurie was incredibly light—at first, T’rid didn’t notice she had rolled off of him. He grinned at her words. “Not many people dare slap a bronzerider,” he pointed out. “You know it’s true, though. Greens Rise often—it’s not a secret.” I have to agree—you really don’t know when to stop, Corinth observed.

Corinth crooned softly as she snuggled into him, lifting his head to rest it upon her back in a half-curled position. It looked rather awkward, but in truth was quite comfortable. He blinked his lids, his eyes whirling in soft green, blue, and purple shades. Well—I guess I wasn’t thinking, he admitted with a sigh, But I can’t honestly say I regret doing so… See? Honesty was always best! T’rid could use a lesson or two on that. I think your Flight was quite worth it, he added firmly. You shouldn’t say it wasn’t—that’s up for your competitors to decide and I think it was.

[reqqy]

Lauranna blinked at T'rid in open surprise. She was just so used to her brother that it was hard to imagine someone would think his present state was - normal. Then again, S'rei did tend to be rather no-nonsense when it came to his wing. On a personal level he was generally amiable and fun-loving, although not wild, as he'd been in his youth. But he immediately got more severe when the training and well-being of his wing was at stake. That only made sense, though, she thought. Laurie was more severe with her weyrling-babies than with others - although more severe with Lauranna was probably still pretty soft, truth be told.

Pondering the question, it was clear she was looking for the best answer, rather than the first to come to mind. "Well, he's rather serious when the situation calls for it, yes. Probably because if anything happens to one of his wingriders, that's his fault - sometimes more directly than others. But he's generally much more laidback and...I don't know, sociable. Things haven't been going so well for him lately. S'rei's stressed." She didn't feel it appropriate to mention that the man and his weyrmate were more or less separated within their own weyr, nor that he felt discarded and abused and disgusted at himself because he still cared for the woman. That was very...personal. And probably not something a kid like this bronzerider could possibly understand.

Throwing a grin at him, the woman giggled. Oh, yes, she'd much enjoy watching that scene. Would S'rei resort to throwing chairs again, she wondered? "Stop him from murdering you...well, I suppose that depends on how much you spoil me between now and then," the woman responded cheekily. "I'd watch out for the furniture, though. That's your free hint!"

She sniffed mildly. He was mocking her, was he? Laurie couldn't be too upset, though. Still, she quite deliberately started acting just a bit peevish. "Well, I don't know. I don't think I'd much like being a male. Though if you want to pretend you're a woman, go right ahead, sport. I won't stop you." Playing with the hairs on his chest lightly, she gifted him with an impish smile. Of course he hadn't meant it that way, either, she was pretty sure, but that was just fine by her. Much more fun with this interpretation.

"Oh! You do look a bit like a lizard, come to think of it! I should have called you Flit." Then she just couldn't hold back anymore, the woman breaking into laughter. "I'm sorry," she finally managed, around a few extra titters. "It's just too hard to resist."

Lauranna stared at T'rid in open disbelief, then very deliberately pinched him. Hard. "He's not the only stubborn idiot. That was a clear sign to drop the topic. Don't you know it's not polite to discuss a lady's 'experience'? Impudent one." I thought you were proud of your experience. Something about having dabbled in... Now would be a very good time to shut up.

Luckily, Reysalth was very much occupied with her flightmate, who had finally succeeded in bringing her back into a state of quiet bliss. His resting his head on her and praising her as he was - even if she still thought it rather silly to try to follow her into the trees at his size - definitely went a long way toward making her feel good about her Flight again. Everyone liked to have their ego boosted a little, no?

You flew very well. Most bronzes can't keep up with me once I get going, Reysalth commented softly, granting him a quiet croon. That might answer the question he'd never voiced, right there. Keeping up with her was a definite prerequisite to Flying her. That poor brown the size of a small to average bronze...he'd faired about as well as bronzes usually did. It was just hard to keep up the fast pace for males such as them. And you're not half-bad as a couch, either, Reysalth added, teasingly.

[Avu]

T’rid watched Laurie solemnly, his hazel eyes wide, as she pondered. It was tempting to say, ‘What? You should know your own brother better than that!’ Out of personal safety issues, he decided against it. A dead Wingsecond was not a very good Wingsecond, after all. Studying her face, he soon realized his first thought had been mistaken. No, she wasn’t confused—she was just trying to think of a good answer. Had she taken him that seriously? T’rid had never been taken as seriously as this before—except when he was angry—and this was rather unsettling, truth be told.

Her answer was…understandable. Partially. T’rid could see why S’rei took wing safety seriously, but honestly, they weren’t little Weyrbrats running around and picking fights whenever. Well, most of them weren’t, T’rid corrected himself absently. He didn’t have to be that serious…just get his point across. A bit of joking couldn’t go amiss. No need to terrify the newest Riders of their Wing—yet. “Mm, really?” he murmured, his mind already busy. There were so many things he could do to loosen the mood. Of course, it could also make it worse, but what was life without a little risk? However, one thing he wouldn’t risk was his position that he’d so recently acquired. He would be good. For now. “And what would ‘Rei’ do if some idiot pulled a prank during wing drills, hmm?” He opened his eyes wide, innocently. “I’m just wondering, you know. Curiosity.”

Oh, so he had to spoil Laurie. Well, then. T’rid considered. Death or servitude? Servitude, no competition there. The bronzer nodded. “And what does my Lady require to make her happy?” he asked, his tone solemn despite the laughter lurking in his eyes. Playacting was always fun, and he really wouldn’t mind running around on errands much. It gave him something to do and a reason to procrastinate in the more important things. Like oiling me, protested Corinth. Oh, hush. You’re full grown, you’re fine. I oil you every day anyway.

Furniture? T’rid paused, staring at Laurie. She wasn’t serious? The idea of S’rei resorting to throwing, mutilating, or otherwise using furniture to take out his irritation elicited a snicker. “And am I watching out for the furniture because it’s headed at me, or because I’m going to feel bad for it if I don’t?” he asked curiously. He wouldn’t mind sticking around to see the Wingleader kill furniture, but if things started flying, T’rid was out.

He rolled his eyes in amused exasperation. Of course Laurie would think of that. “Except that,” he assured her, a grin flickering across his face. “You’re lucky you are a girl,” he added, “Because if you weren’t, I wouldn’t be in here still.” Nope—he’d be halfway across the Weyr screaming bloody murder at Corinth because the bronze had made him sleep with a male. He shuddered at the thought. “And also, your brother probably wouldn’t be too happy because I’d have to murder Corinth, then.”

From ‘boy’ to ‘pup’ to ‘sport’ to ‘flit.’ Wow, this was definitely going uphill, wasn’t it? Even in his thoughts, T’rid couldn’t cancel out the sarcasm. “Stick to ‘sport,’” he suggested. “Or I’ll start calling you…” He paused, considering. Are you trying to think of a good name or an insulting name? Corinth asked. A name that’s not insulting, but that Laurie won’t like…suggestions? There was no answer. Of course not. “Ah, I’ll just call you ‘green’ or something.” His imagination had apparently deserted him.

He smirked, amused at her reaction despite the sudden pain. “Of course,” he agreed, amused. “Dragons and Riders fully matched—he’s an idiot, so’m I.” …I hope you get a concussion someday when you forget to watch your tongue… Well, now—that wasn’t very nice, was it? T’rid frowned at the bronze, but it probably went unnoticed. “But if it means you’ll stop pinching me, okay. Topic’s over. Moving on.” He paused, considering. New topic being…? Topics didn’t just pop out of between. “Your choice,” T’rid added. There. She could deal with the stress of having to pick an interesting idea to talk about.

Corinth was very pleased—both with himself and with Reysalth. He sighed contentedly at her croon and responded with a low rumble. You were fast, he agreed, Ridmine says my wingspan is larger in proportion to my size, so that’s part of the reason I can fly faster than some bronzes. And it’s not as if you weren’t tempting, the bronze added earnestly. She had been very, very pretty and he would have been on her tail in an instant if he hadn’t been holding back the Flightlust in order to make sure T’rid didn’t end up dead. Her teasing elicited an amused croon. That’s the first time I’ve heard that before, Corinth answered, But thank you, you’re quite comfortable yourself.

[reqqy]

Laurie's eyes flashed with clear mischief. Oh, she'd love to see someone pulling a prank in the middle of drills! "That would depend on who was doing it, I imagine," she answered vaguely. And if the prank was likely to get anyone hurt, too, but she decided not to mention that one. Nope. The greenrider made a mental note to press S'rei for wingdrill updates from now on, just so she wouldn't miss it when T'rid - wondered - about pulling a prank.

"Oh, is that dangerous!" The greenrider tittered, pleased. Very, very dangerous. "What would I have you do?" Lauranna pondered for a long moment. She and F'rah had Zolten to help out with a lot of things, and she'd much prefer something - interesting - just to get a reaction out of T'rid. Then she shrugged. "A person truly adept at spoiling me would have to figure that out for himself." Had she been unable to come up with anything? Surely not!

She blinked at the boy, rather confused. "You normally feel bad for furniture? You know, I have some names of good mindhealers around here..." Casually brushing a strand of his hair from her chest, Laurie smirked at him. "I'd imagine, though I'm only guessing, that the furniture would likely be thrown at you, sport. That's what happened with the Headwoman, anyway." Had T'rid not gone to that Clutching? Then again, it wasn't exactly Laurie's idea of fun to watch a dragon lay eggs, eithre, so she couldn't blame him.

Lauranna beamed at him. "You'll end up with a male eventually. I remember the first time Rei did." That started her laughing again. "It was actually Salenth's first successful Flight. Can you imagine? My brother - he was smaller even than me at the time - spent nearly a full day in the baths scrubbing at himself. An older greenrider, too." Laurie laughed again. There were just some stories she couldn't resist telling. S'rei had Impressed at twelve, and was already something of a horny little bastard by that time, though that probably had a lot to do with having two older brothers. He was still pretty small at thirteen. Salenth - was unusually successful in Flights, for some reason.

"You'll call me green?" Lauranna pouted. "How ever will I deal with that ghastly name? I shudder to think of it! Green!" And she made a show of shuddering, too, using it as an excuse to 'accidentally' brush up against him - several times. "You're not a flit! Please, just don't call me green!"

The greenrider burst into a wide grin when he told her she could pick the topic, and it should have discomfitted most anyone. "All right then." Propping herself up on one elbow, she gazed at T'rid curiously. "I've always been curious...and Rei won't tell me about what it's like...so tell me about your first time. In detail."

Ah! She remembered why she liked the young ones, suddenly. They could be so adorable at times. Reysalth basked in his praise, but more at his tone, which seemed youthfully eager to please her. They are nice wings. I'll have to bite you if you don't take better care of them, though, the green responded, her tone too affectionate to sound properly scolding.

Well, I'm glad that I'm not your cookie cutter dragon, then, Reysalth commented, amused. And you can cuddle with me as long as you like - or at least until one of us has drills or needs to eat, she added.

[Avu]

T’rid considered that. It didn’t really give him much to work with, unfortunately. Of course, he might just get lectured for a while about how he was supposed to be a role model for the newer Riders, and how he should do his best to be serious during Wing Drills—which wouldn’t be very fun, especially if it was in front of the new Riders in question. From what he’d seen, S’rei was pretty good about not lecturing in front of an entire wing, but an immature Wingsecond could possibly be dealt differently with than bickering dragons. “And if I were to do it?” he pressed. He heard Corinth snort audibly outside.

Hoping that her choice of errands wasn’t too impossible, T’rid closed his eyes briefly, but to his—surprise—the sleepiness had mostly gone. He sighed, rolling onto his chest and propping his chin onto his hands, elbows sinking into the bed. “So I get to decide what I do? Like, whether I should do something dramatic and entertain you, or just be the meek little servant?” Oh, drama was good. He could always do dramatic better than not so. Being ignored was no fun, after all…a half-grin tugged crookedly at one corner of his lip. “Don’t I at least get a hint?”

He shook his head at her confusion, grinning wryly now. “What I meant was more along the lines of, am I going to be hurt by furniture, or is it going to be hurt in my stead?” He winced at her confession. Dodging furniture was not very fun. “Well then…” Even so, the idea of the headwoman being pinned down by furniture made him snicker. Hmm, served her right. She hadn’t exactly been easy on him as a Candidate and Weyrling…“And did anything actually hit her, or was it just raining furniture all around her?” he asked curiously. Throwing furniture—he might try that someday. It sounded…fun.

Laurie’s…remark made T’rid flinch. Flying a male was not very high on his list of ‘Thing to Do.’ Perhaps some people had dual tastes or something, but he for one did not. “I’ll deal with that when Corinth makes me, but for now…” He sighed, although he did laugh at the idea of S’rei as a little boy running from the Flightrooms in terror to go wash off the bad Greenrider germs. “And this Greenrider—did he wish to stay with poor little Rei after the Flight was over?” As a rough rule of thumb, male Greenriders were not picky about who shared their bed and when. Listen and learn, Corinth. If you Fly a green who has a male Rider, you won’t get oiled because I’ll be too busy trying to clean myself off. Ha, ha. Very funny, Corinth retorted irritably. As if he cared what gender the Rider of a dragon was. Until maybe after the Flight was over, because that was when T’rid figured out what Corinth had made him do and would probably start yelling.

So he wasn’t the only one with a dramatic flair. T’rid grinned at her reaction—although he narrowly avoided pursing his lips fretfully as she touched him again, more than once, too. He frowned with mock sternness. “Glad to see you’ve learned your lesson, Laurie. Now that the issue of names has been covered…” Sport. Sport? Well, it wasn’t an awful name, but neither was it one T’rid was particularly fond of. He preferred his name—surpassing that, he would settle for things like “Bronzerider” or “Wingsecond”. Apparently such ranks were ignored after Flights. It was hard to be stiff and formal with someone you’d just Flown with. For obvious reasons.

Laurie’s grin was warning enough that something was coming. And T’rid was right. He knew he had reddened and fought the color out of his cheeks. Showing true emotions was not fun, generally because either someone wouldn’t understand or would tease. “Well, uh, if Rei gets away with not telling, can’t I?” The basics might have been fine—where, when, why, who. But in detail was a bit personal, now, wasn’t it? “I mean…” He considered. “I was…um, at Selenitas Hold? And…it was…with…a girl…?” There. That was quite enough information (and still more than he’d shared with anyone except Corinth, but the bronze had probably forgotten by now anyway).

Corinth nodded as well as he could without removing his head from its very comfortable perch on Reysalth’s back. Your word is my command, he agreed. Besides, Ridmine would probably kill me if I did. The Bronzerider had been slightly mad already, and he hadn’t even known the extent of the damage. Truly it wasn’t too bad, just a few shallow scrapes and cuts, a bruise or two—but still. Anything that might get them grounded from flying in the next Wing Drill would make T’rid fret and when he fretted, his temper was always close under the surface.

He rumbled, pleased by the invitation to stay with Reysalth. Corinth was not one of those males who Flew a female and took off to flirt with the next dragon close to Rising. Oh, no. He liked to talk and snuggle for a while. It felt good and, as an extra plus, it forced T’rid to stay with whatever female or male who happened to ride the dragon he’d Flown. Which sometimes made him happy, sometimes mad, sometimes embarrassed—it was a rainbow of emotions, which Corinth found amusing. I think I’ll take you up on that, he said solemnly, You can’t possibly know how comfortable I am right now.

[reqqy]

"Oh, I'm sure he'd do what he thought was fair," Laurie responded with a grin. Silly child. She wasn't going to suggest he get himself in trouble with S'rei, but it was just too good a chance to pass up. No way was the greenrider about to tell him anything detailed about what would likely happen. T'rid was a southerner, through and through. You didn't mess around in wing drills in the north, and certainly not as a wingsecond. While Lauranna herself had never been to the northern continent, at least since the war started, the greenrider knew her brother very well. Especially right about now...Oh, it would be fun to watch!

Regarding the smirking brozerider with a mischievous grin of her own, she merely nodded at his intial question. He got to decide! Then, she snorted. "Hints? Come now, sport. That's far too easy for an intelligent bronzerider like yourself. Surely you can figure out a simple greenrider?" Regarding him through half-lidded eyes, she traced a finger down his side as she said it. Laurie really couldn't resist. It was pathetic and delicious all at once, that she couldn't seem to control herself.

He seemed abnormally interested in the furniture bit, although that didn't bother her overly much, as it had been rather amusing. "No, he didn't hit her, but he broke the chair he threw it so hard. Oh, wait. It bounced and clipped her, as I recall." Laurie giggled. "There were a few people avoiding him after that. Rei's temper can be quite something at times. It runs in the family, apparently."

Lauranna pondered T'rid's question, then shrugged. "I'm not sure. Rei was out of there pretty quickly, as I recall. In general, we try to be good about people who get a little freaked, especially the really young ones, so I imagine it was nothing too clingy. Although he probably did try to keep my brother there a little longer." The greenrider tittered again, trying to picture that. In all honesty, S'rei probably didn't have much trouble with it anymore, but it had to have been quite unnerving those first few times.

Awesomely brilliant blush. She was pleased with herself, truly. "Hm. A holder, then? That would be interesting. We come from a line of dragonriders, ourselves." Of course, she wasn't about to let him off the hook that easily. No way. "A girl. Wow. So descriptive. Was she older? Experienced? Or a virgin, too? Did you like her or was it curiosity or pure lust? Did you continue to see each other? Were you awkward with her? Do tell." Oh, she might have been less pushy, but Laurie liked this snotty boy blushing for her, since he seemed to want to look so self-assured, and if that meant hammering him on this topic, she'd definitely do it.

That would be a shame. I think I'm growing rather attached to you, Reysalth responded, flirtatious as ever. Oh, it was true enough now, but she'd likely be just as interested in another male whenever they parted ways. It wasn't that she meant to be disloyal. Reysalth was simply fickle by nature.

The green nestled against Corinth and crooned softly in something that very much resembled a feline's purr. No? I can guess. To illustrate that, she nuzzled him lightly, finding a position she liked and settling for what would either be a nice conversation or an equally nice nap. Reysalth wasn't picky, so long as she got to snuggle up to the large creature and leech of his warmth a little.

[Avu]

“And what he sees fit will probably result in my being humiliated?” T’rid guessed. It seemed probable, especially if S’rei was in his oh-so-serious mood. He had been quite snippety at C’lryn and K’lir, not to mention Kemma. Well, perhaps it would amuse some of the Wingriders—both the initial prank and the fact that he got berated for being immature. Or he could just use Laurie as a shield—that was always a possibility. How he would accomplish that was as of yet a mystery, but surely he could figure out something. Eventually. “Either humiliated or physically pained,” he decided meditatively, grinning. It wasn’t that he was afraid of S’rei. Rather, he liked the idea of messing around a bit and pushing the limits—just figure out where the boundaries where to better know just how far they would bend.

T’rid couldn’t help acting. Some would actually call it lying, but it came naturally and T’rid saw no reason he shouldn’t exercise such a lovely mental limb. He sighed deeply, sadly, waggling his head sagely. “But if I do something wrong, then you wouldn’t protect me, would you?” He was really trying his best not to take her little hints too seriously, although Laurie really was pushing it. But honestly—she had (if his guess was correct) a Weyrmate. Did she really want him, too? Even after the Flight was over? That was a bit hard to swallow even if Laurie did like an assortment of males. “So,” he went on, “You need to tell me what you want, or how can I give it to you?” Still in mock-anxious tones.

The Bronzerider was biting back laughter as the scene played out in his imagination. It was very, very amusing, too. “Mm. And you didn’t feel bad for the chair? It not only broke, it also had to touch the headwoman.” There was no fondness there—oh, no, no. He’d had enough chores assigned by the headwoman or one of her minions to want to avoid her forever. “You don’t seem liable to throwing chairs around,” he pointed out, quirking his eyebrows curiously. As amazingly active as his imagination could or couldn’t be, T’rid really couldn’t picture Laurie flinging chairs at someone out of temper. Perhaps…oh wait. She’d thrown a shoe at him. But that was in Flight, and a shoe was hardly as painful as a chair was.

“Ah, poor little Rei: So scared.” T’rid shook his head, biting back a snicker. It was always fun to imagine people in awkward situations, friends or foe, and S’rei was no exception. It was hard to imagine the serious Wingleader as a scared boy, but still possible, although the details were rather blurred. Mostly it included a boy running out of the Flightrooms as fast as his legs would carry him, while a seductive voice called out for him to wait. Oh, yes. It was very amusing. “Have you ever asked a male Greenrider if they’d want Rei to be their Flightpartner?” The idea was again amusing. S’rei, T’rid decided, was either used to having Laurie talk about his experiences, or would be irritated when he heard about this chat. If he heard about it.

T’rid bit his lip, a tolerantly amused expression on his face now, as he considered the barrage of questions. “First question. Older? Um, I think the same number of Turns. Maybe older by a couple of months. Second question. I didn’t ask her if she’d ever been Flown before, so I wouldn’t know. Third question…um, I don’t know.” Curious—he really didn’t. Had he liked her? He couldn’t so much as recall her name anymore. Probably not, then. “I don’t know. Maybe I did. Most likely curious.” He blinked, embarrassed, and addressed the ceiling as he ran his hand through his hair. He was not going to let Laurie choose the topic again after this if he could have a say in it. “Fourth question. I don’t think I ever Flew her again, if that’s what you mean, but that’s not to say we were awkward around each other after that either. Oh, wait, sorry. That’s the fifth question.” He paused, coughed pointedly. “Examination over?” He was probably blushing again, and made no move to conceal it. He had a right to be embarrassed, didn’t he? This was a private topic.

Corinth rumbled in amusement, and the shade of red on his Rider’s face darkened, barely perceptibly. Stupid bronze—had to pick just the wrong moment to tune into his thoughts. Thankfully, Corinth didn’t actually speak to him. Why would he? He had Reysalth to cuddle with and talk to. Well, perhaps I could convince him to let me say good-bye before he kills me, the bronze suggested. Of course, he might just irk T’rid by asking him that, but it was worth a shot, wasn’t it? Of course, perhaps if I begged he would spare me, he added meditatively.

Her purring and nuzzling was not lost on Corinth, who arched his neck slightly, his muzzle brushing against one of Reysalth’s wings in an appreciative croon. You’d have to guess again, because you just made me even more comfortable, he murmured, a sleepy noise of contentment rising in his throat. Oh, she did feel good though…better than a hard stone ledge did. How he could have even considered leaving Reysalth and returning to a cold slab of stone…