Avu
Weyrleader Ce'thian Rider A'emi Handler Sena Harper Matteo Weyrbrat Riaren
Posts: 2,439
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Post by Avu on Jul 9, 2008 15:31:28 GMT -5
T’rid made a face as he kicked through the water. It was so wet. And annoying. Wet was annoying. Therefore, water was annoying. What a simple piece of logic that most people simply didn’t understand. The shore was so close, and then—a few moments after Liassa pulled herself up, T’rid followed. He ran both hands through his hair, trying to dislodge the excess water droplets, which splattered onto the grass like a miniature waterfall. He sighed, glancing behind him as Corinth pulled himself out of the water too, spreading his wings and fanning them in the air. Water slows me up, the bronze said sadly.
Want my advice? Don’t get near it. T’rid wrinkled his nose. Stupid wet clothes. His fingers found the belt he wore, along with his belt knife—Thank Faranth it hadn’t fallen out or been otherwise lost—and discarded it impatiently. Wherhide…it clung to his skin when wet, just like any other cloth. He’d really have to see to it that he got a new one soon, before this one decided to rip, shrink, or die on him. T’rid succeeded in peeling off his shirt. Can you hang onto this, Corinth?
The bronze eyed him dispassionately. I am not, he said, [color=cc7722A CLOTHESHANGER. Hang it on a tree.[/color] T’rid shrugged, grinning affectionately at the bronze, and tossed his shirt at random at a tree. By pure luck, it caught and hung, swaying in the breeze created by Corinth’s wings. He glanced over at Liassa, who seemed to be searching for something in her pockets. “Loose something?” he asked, wishing that he could just change instead of having to sit out here, shirtless, and wait for himself to dry off. Without going back to his weyr, of course. That would be no fun.
I guess I did accomplish something, Corinth said, sounding mildly surprised. Something fall off? It happens. The bronze reached his neck around and stared at His, eyes whirling amused shades of blue and green, and sent T’rid an image of himself, riding on the wind currents with T’rid on his back. And a knife dropping from T’rid’s belt and hitting some unfortunate person below. Luckily it hadn’t been blade-down when it hit. All that had been accomplished was T’rid gaining some new knowledge of more swear words and a purple lump rising on a man’s head. Beautiful.[/size]
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Post by ryanne on Jul 10, 2008 10:40:08 GMT -5
Lia continued her almost frantic search, not wanting to have to dry her hair as well as her clothes. If she could just tie it back up, it'd be one less wet thing to worry about. But she came up with nothing. So she sighed, finding a rock to sit on. "Just my leather tie, that's all. I didn't want to have to leave my hair down." She wrinkled her nose a bit at the silliness of it all and then laid back, glad for the sun that was beating down on them. It was November, sure, but it was still warm enough to swim and sun. That was the beauty of living in the South.
She didn't even spare T'rid a glance as she spread her hair back behind her, combing her fingers lightly through its lengths. It was long and annoying most of the time, but she couldn't bring herself to cut it. She supposed it would be necessary sometime for dragonriding, but until someone told her it had to go, it would stay. It wasn't that she like the feminity it gave her, she'd still look like a girl without it, it was just part of her and she hated to do away with that. Letting the sun lull her a bit, she simply sat there, hands in her hair hoping that her tunic would dry quickly. Even with the sun, the wind was making her kind of chilly. It would be no problem if she wasn't hampered by her soggy clothing.
Looking over at T'rid finally, she caught a glimpse of his bared chest and almost let her face take an appreciative look. Instead, she just look at his face, ignoring his very well-formed body. She could appreciate that without letting him know. "You're not going to be annoying if I take off my tunic, are you? I'm cold and I'm wearing a breastband. It just needs to dry out separately." If there was one thing that Lia simply couldn't stand, it was being cold and if she could use her breatband to maintain some form of decorum and get dry and warm, she would. It would just depend on whether or not the sharding bronzerider would be able to let her do it without trying to make her feel awkward or annoy her just for the sake of being annoying. It was wishful thinking, but maybe he could keep his mouth shut about it. After all, it was his dragon that had soaked them so thoroughly.
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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 Jul 10, 2008 15:39:42 GMT -5
“A hair tie. Wow.” T’rid grinned, shaking his own hair. Droplets flew. Imagine having that much Sharding hair, to the point that you’d need a hair tie to keep it out of your way. Bad for riding, and annoying. “Can’t you just use a vine or something stupid like that? I don’t see how it makes a difference.” Mm. If only he had something dry with which to wipe his face. And his body, come to that, because even though the wetly clinging tunic had been discarded, he was still damp. And you’re damp as well, aren’t you? he added to Corinth. The bronze answered sorrowfully in the affirmative, eliciting a grin from his rider. Serves you right for getting us drenched, he replied.
Corinth murmured indignantly, shaking out his wings and spraying T’rid again. The young man scowled as he found a dry spot on the grass and collapsed, moving his shoulders against the blades of grass. It felt good, and it also wiped off some of the water drops. He cast a brief glance at Liassa. Very long hair. How annoying, just like being wet, and water, was annoying. At her question, he shrugged, glancing at her again. “I don’t see why it even bothers you,” he replied, running his hands through his hair again so that it stood up in wet spikes. “Whatever. I’m not perverted, you know.”
To give credit where credit was due, he wasn’t. Sure, he’d poke fun at something stupid, but T’rid hadn’t, as of yet, made fun of a woman’s figure. “Although,” he added shrewdly, “I can’t promise anything.” Promises were made to be broken anyway. After all, if you weren’t afraid someone would break their promise, why make them make one to begin with? There was no point. Corinth shook his wings again, shedding yet another layer of water. One day, a woman is going to sock you in the face and I must say, Mine, you will deserve it, the bronze commented dryly.
Thank you, Corinth. Thank you so very much. T’rid made a face at the bronze as he pushed himself up onto his elbows, his gaze flickering around the lake where they were currently located. It was nice there. Perhaps he’d come back after he got Corinth to swear to Faranth that he wouldn’t be soaked again. Perhaps.
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Post by ryanne on Jul 10, 2008 16:20:03 GMT -5
Lia rolled her eyes as he spoke, ignoring his question. Wrap a dirty, nasty vine in her hair, no. She'd just keep it off her back and hopefully it would dry out soon enough in the sun. The beautiful wonderful sun. Smiling just a little, she felt the warmth on her face. She was never happier than when she was working outside with the sun or just allowed to lay out, enjoying the rays. Of course, she didn't get much time to and with how she'd been feeling recently, she didn't like to stray to her favorite sunning rocks that were just far enough away from the weyr that she couldn't get to the infirmary if it finally became necessary. So this was just bliss. Even though the wind was still chilling her a bit.
With T'rid's comments, she just laughed at bit, ignoring the fact that they were utterly annoying. If she didn't give him any ammo, maybe he'd shut up and enjoy the sun as well. Deciding that it would be worth any comment he decided to make about the fact that she was stripping for him or the ugliness of her body. Nope, she could take it. She was a big girl. She just hoped that Tiaeth would be asleep enough or naiive enough to not understand them. Hesitantly, she pulled the loose tunic over her head and then laid back down, draping the tunic alongside her on the rock. That felt so much better. The warmth of the rock on her bare back was even more heavenly and it warmed her almost as much as the sun on her stomach. Yes, this was a life.
She quickly decided that T'rid's piss poor attitude was worth this excursion. Getting to take a reckless ride on a bronze that involved dipping in the water and getting to see the look on his face when he realized she'd tricked him. Oh yes, it was all quite priceless. Sighing contentedly, she wiggled a bit on the rock before closing her eyes and just laying still, enjoying the sun. Slowly, her hair was beginning to dry and taking on a natural curl that the bun usually straightened out of it. Her tunic, however, was stubbornly staying wet. Shard that thick material.
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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 Jul 10, 2008 16:33:41 GMT -5
T’rid watched in something bordering in amusement as she took off the wet tunic, looking as if she expected him to taunt her at any moment. Well, whatever. Perhaps he’d actually leave off for a little while. The sun was nice, drying the water droplets still clinging stubbornly to his hair and skin. Very nice indeed…he half-closed his eyes as he pushed his fingers through the grass, absently ripping up a handful of the green blades. The pieces of grass drifted from his fingers as the breeze blew softly again. They either landed on Liassa or Corinth or the lake. Corinth blew an irritable breath as he got a few grass stalks clinging to him, shook, and sent them flying in all directions. T’rid grinned.
So, Corinth, he said, deciding to play it lazy (and safe) and not involve the girl in any conversation that might (more likely, this) or might not (yeah, sure) end up in him taunting her again or being sarcastic. After all, he’d said (but not promised, a loophole) that he wouldn’t. But she probably thought he would, so he’d just not. Are you drying off? Or am I going to have to go fetch a towel again?
The bronze turned his head, his eyes whirling idle shades of green and blue. I am drying; I am nearly entirely dry now, he said. Perhaps you’ll oil me, though? I don’t feel bad but I’ll feel better if you do oil me. His logic was undeniable.
Hmm, sure. T’rid rolled over so that he lay flat on his chest. Shading his eyes, he grinned as he made out Liassa’s form where she was laying on the rock, looking, to T’rid, as if she’d just about fallen asleep. Well, now, they didn’t want that, did they? Who knew what terrible creatures lurked outside waiting to eat sleeping girls? T’rid bit his lip, half in annoyance and half in amusement. He was even getting sarcastic when he thought to himself. Shards, that was really surprising. “Baking nicely, I hope,” he called to Liassa, pulling himself into a sitting position and swiveling so the sun could reach his back better.
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Post by ryanne on Jul 10, 2008 18:36:58 GMT -5
Liassa almost held her breath, waiting for him to say something. Remembering that he gave his word wasn’t much comfort. She knew his type, he might keep his mouth shut for a moment, but then he’d let her have it when she had finally settled down. She just didn’t want to hear it. She was already uncomfortable enough. Her body wasn’t as fit as it used to be. Since she’d been having trouble keeping down food, she’d lost some weight, but still she was gaining an odd amount of weight around her hips. No matter how much she exercised or watched what she ate, she couldn’t get that little pooch to go away. It was sharding uncomfortable.
She drifted in and out, exhausted because a headache had kept her up for half the night. She was lucky that she had been able to keep her head for as long as she had. She didn’t even notice as the grass stalks drifted on her, peppering her stomach and a few falling on her face. She just continued to sleep, falling slowly into a deeper sleep. With the sun beating down on her and her hair drying out and the stillness of the day, she couldn’t help it. She was suddenly so sharding exhausted.
Lia finally drifted off into a solid sleep with a voice drifted through. Surprised, she shot up almost slipping on the rock. Shaking her hair from out her face, she frowned, “Yes, I was.” Sighing, she flipped over, letting the sun catch her back nicely. She decided not to say anything else. She knew that he would berate her for shutting up or berate her for saying something. Not talking took so much less effort. And she wanted to go back to sleep. She was not in the mood to deal with him anymore.
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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 Jul 11, 2008 15:09:14 GMT -5
T’rid all but pouted. She didn’t even seem to register the grass stalks. He tugged restlessly at another handful of the grass. It pulled free and fluttered through his fingers, this time spreading ripples across the lake’s once-calm waters. He watched it, eyes hooded with boredom. Yes, sleeping had been his original plan, but now he was wet, and he’d had fun. So sleeping was no longer an option. His gaze flicked over Liassa’s prone figure, Corinth, who had drifted into sleep as well, his sides rising and falling rhythmically as he breathed, and landed on a scrap piece of wood. Probably a hunk of some tree somewhere. It wasn’t like they were exactly scarce. T’rid grinned as he glanced around at the trees bordering the lake. Which one had this scrap come off of, hmm?
Just as he was scanning the trees, Liassa spoke. “Yes, I was.” That was all. Although he had elicited a start and a frown. That wasn’t too satisfying, though. T’rid made a face. “That was incredibly literate.” He closed his fingers around the piece of wood, aimed, and threw it at a rock. Although it was far from hitting the center, it made a satisfying noise as it hit. “Oh, go on. I didn’t bring you here to sleep, y’ know. I thought you could do that okay without me.” T’rid raised an eyebrow at Liassa, turning his head at a slightly awkward position to register her entire form.
As if you actually ‘brought’ her here, Corinth chortled mentally at him, as T’rid pushed himself off the ground into a standing position. T’rid stuck out his tongue at the bronze. See you’ve woken, he replied. Wher, sleeping through the day! Corinth huffed indignantly as his Rider made his way carefully, deliberately putting one foot in front of the other, towards the rock on which Liassa was sprawled. It was a large rock. T’rid found a spot that blocked out the sun, and sat down, crossing his legs in front of him as he gazed solemnly down at Liassa, waiting for a reaction. Something. Anything, even something as trivial as a pout or a hiss of annoyance or—something. He tilted his head with a smirk, studying the girl’s face.
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Post by ryanne on Jul 13, 2008 18:32:29 GMT -5
Lia knew that he wasn't going to leave her alone. It just seemed to be something that was against his nature. She closed her eyes as she layed on her stomach, but she resigned herself to the fact that she was going to have to entertain him in a moment. Once he figured out a way to make sure the attention was on him and that she was moving without making himself see needy, she was going to have to wake up fully. And there he went. First he began to throw things and then he decided that he didn't bring her out here to sleep. Well, he didn't bring her out here in the first place. The last time she checked, Corinth flew them there and he wasn't too happy about the fact that they were here. She sighed softly before reopening her eyes. She wasn't in the mood to argue with him anymore.
She watched him as he walked over, seeing his awkward way of moving. She laughed softly, amused by his own ways of entertaining himself. He was so much like a little 'brat and it was almost, note: almost, adorable. If she was in a better mood, she wouldn't be annoyed by it. When he got about halfway there, she grew bored of watching him, closing her eyes again and enjoying the little bit of sun she could get before she had to lift herself up to talk to T'rid and amuse him so that he didn't do something extreme, like dump her in the water. That wouldn't be a good thing.
Reopening her eyes when she heard some movement, she looked up to see T'rid staring down at her intently. She almost started, but caught herself before she showed any outside indication of it. Childishly, she stuck her tongue out at him, rising from the rock and stretching. She accidentally (yes, she actually did it accidentally even though she kind of wished she could claim she did it on purpose) bumped his shoulder with her arm as she pulled and stretched the muscles. With a sheepish grin, she laughed, dashing off across the little cession from the trees, expecting him to chase after her.
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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 Jul 14, 2008 15:01:20 GMT -5
Waiting for a reaction was always enjoyable, was it not? T’rid didn’t have long to wait, though, because Liassa opened her eyes almost right away, and stuck out her tongue at him. Very immature way of showing her emotions, but who was he to complain? He’d stuck out his own tongue at Corinth only minutes earlier, after all. He grinned, shaking his head sagely. “Very immature,” he stated, settling back as she sat up and stretched a bit. Letting her stretch, T’rid glanced at Corinth, who had fallen asleep, sides rising and falling steadily. He turned back when something, most probably Liassa, touched his shoulder. He raised his eyebrow, but judging by the sheepishness of her grin, it had been an accident. Oh, but accidents were no fun. Now what was she doing?
His eyebrows shot up as she jumped up and ran. Unexpected, no doubt. T’rid sighed. He was spending far too much time chasing after females these days, and none of the times had been flirtatiously. Another one for the record. He shook his head again, letting Liassa get a few dragonlengths away as he mulled it over in his mind. Well, hmm. Corinth would no doubt guard his clothing and knife until he got back, and if he woke when T’rid still hadn’t returned, well then, he could always contact him mentally. It would be no problem, hopefully. And if it was, well, what of it? Problems were what made life fun.
T’rid pushed himself off of the rock that he had occupied for so short a time, and, finding Liassa’s form, darted after her. The water that his pants and boots had acquired did not make the running particularly comfortable, but neither did it hinder him. T’rid ducked under a branch, a grin curling the side of his mouth. This was fun, not something silly or boring like the other females back at the Weyr might do for ‘amusement.’ No, Liassa was undoubtedly unique. “Oh, come on, what do you want me to do, tackle you?” he called, biting back the laughter as he ran.
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Post by ryanne on Jul 14, 2008 16:15:23 GMT -5
Liassa just grinned when he called her immature. Like he was one to talk. She was too busy running to reply. She didn’t pay any mind to wondering whether or not he was following. He would follow, she was sure. Where this confidence was coming from, she had no idea, but she wasn’t in the mood to wonder. She was going to enjoy it while it lasted. Knowing her moods currently, it wouldn’t last for very long. She just laughed and continued to run, leaving the clearing and darting through the trees.
It wasn’t too long before he called out to her. “If you can catch me,” she challenged, weaving in and out of trees before breaking back into the clearing. The smile on her face was so bright and then the giggles began to break through. This was entertaining. She loved running around, it made her feel warm even with the breeze. And at least her tunic wasn’t flapping against her as she ran. It was annoying enough in her wets bottoms. But she was fast even with them there to bug her.
One thing she could do was run. She wasn’t necessarily the fastest, but her childhood in the Creche had given her a bit of speed and a surety on her feet. Lia was used to running around and getting dirty and this was one of those times. This reminded her of the game they used to play when they were young. One person had to try and catch one of the others running around and when they caught one, the caught person had to turn around and try and catch. But there was only the two of them. And she wasn’t planning on being caught.
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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 Jul 14, 2008 16:25:26 GMT -5
Shard the girl for leaving the clearing; that meant more branches that tried to whack him. T’rid ducked around a particularly menacing bush and fixed his eyes on her fleeing form. He was actually enjoying this, surprisingly; it had been a while since he’d been so free and normally, running didn’t even make him feel that way anyway. It was normally the more risky, razor’s-edge type thing that made him feel good, like asking Corinth to go up as high as possible and drop. Or something like that. At least, he thought as he ran, he wasn’t out of shape; at least he could run, and while he wasn’t the speediest person in the Weyr, he definitely wasn’t the slowest. And seriously, she was just a girl. It would only be a little while before he caught her. And then what? Tackle her?
The answer to this came drifting back on the wind, followed by giggles. So she was the giggly type? She hadn’t giggled before. Girls. They were so unpredictable. T’rid ducked another branch, nearly tripped over a very low-lying bush, swore through his teeth, and realized that he was in the clearing again. He put on a burst of speed. He could definitely run faster, T’rid reasoned, if he knew for sure that he wasn’t about to be whacked in the face by some branch that some idiotic tree had stuck into his path. What right had the tree to be in his way, after all?
There was a kind of wild glory to running, especially when there weren’t people around; just them, the sun drying off his body and trousers, which were clinging to him and acquiring particles of dirt in his run, and the grass underfoot. Relaxing? Almost, in a way. T’rid preferred this kind of ‘relaxing’ to the kind in which one just lay about. That was no fun; this was fun. His feet were probably aching with their contact against the ground without the thick soles of his boots to protect them, but he felt oddly distant from his feet. Right now, he was just concentrating on Liassa in front of him, wanting to catch her, without knowing exactly why he wanted to. Call it runner’s high if you like.
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Post by ryanne on Jul 14, 2008 18:17:41 GMT -5
Easily running through the clearing, Liassa’s hair trailed behind her, whipping in her face ever so often. She wished she had a tie to pull it back, but she refused to focus on that as she ran from the bronzerider. Instead, she just brushed it away, annoyed with its lengths. She looked back for the first time, seeing T’rid gaining on her a bit. She resisted the urge to squeal, trying to run faster, but she couldn’t go much faster. She wasn’t much of a runner. She just faced back to the front and ran back into the woods with a laugh. She managed to keep her lead when there were obstacles to keep him from sprinting.
Nimbly, she jumped over a few branches before ducking beneath a low-hanging tree branch. “Given up yet?” she asked before she abruptly emerged in a different clearing. She just grinned, racing as fast as she could back towards the trees. The clearing was a bit larger, though, so she had a ways to go before she’d be back into the trees. She knew she was in danger now. The trees allowed her to stay ahead, but the clearing was an easy chance for him to catch her.
Instead of giving up, though, she continued to run. Looking back at him again, she grinned, before facing back to the front, trying to weave to throw him off. Hopefully if he came at her, she could dodge him. Liassa wasn’t very nimble on her feet, but she wasn’t sure how quick T’rid was either. Whatever the case was, she was having a great time.
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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 Jul 15, 2008 15:01:02 GMT -5
T’rid swore under his breath as a branch caught his arm, scratching it—not deeply; no blood issued from the scratch. It still stung his pride, though, if not his body. Shaking his head to dislodge some leaves, he pushed himself forward, determined to make sure that the girl knew that she wasn’t faster than he was. That would be downright embarrassing, and also something that he definitely wouldn’t stand for. Only…gah, why hadn’t he put his boots back on before running? The rocks were annoyingly hard on his bare feet, and even if they would’ve been squishy with water, at least they would’ve provided a bit of protection. As soon as he stubbed his toe, the chase would be over.
Luckily, he didn’t stub his toe as the girl darted back into the woods, with yet another female laugh. Pfft. Girls and their little silly ways. Although he couldn’t deny the grin on his face, at least he wasn’t laughing. Yet. It was only a matter of time. After all, it’d been a while since he’d had this much fun with anyone but Corinth, who was currently sleeping as if he’d been knocked out. Ducking around yet another branch that waved threateningly at him, T’rid tested his theory by reaching for the bronze’s mind. Nothing but a sleepy contentment. Of course. T’rid grinned, and then the grin vanished, replaced by a startled look as sudden sunlight poured over him.
Another clearing! Shard it, how many were there? The girl’s call floated back to him. “Are you kidding? I never give up!” he yelled back. Nothing to stub his toe or head or anything in between on here, in this clearing! T’rid grinned, a triumphant grin, as he sped up again, sprinting, wondering at the same time if it was right for him to simply tackle a girl, just because she’d said he could in rather loose terms. Ah well, that was what she got for running! And now she was weaving. Ah, didn’t she think he knew better than that? He’d been in Threadfall before, hadn’t he? His mind had been programmed to strike where something would be, instead of where it was. That was Threadfall, and now it was tackling a running girl. T’rid’s grin widened as he added some more speed…although a girl, a living organism with half a brain—well, that was different from Thread, which simply fell…never mind, though.
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Post by ryanne on Jul 15, 2008 18:37:46 GMT -5
She was too busy running to notice that T’rid was getting himself hurt behind her. If she had noticed, she would automatically have decided that it was his fault. If he was a better runner, he wouldn’t get hurt by the branches. She had managed to avoid them just fine. She had dodged all her tree branches just fine. Giggling again, she continued to weave back and forth. She would win. All she had to do is get through the clearing and then there would be no way that he would catch her.
Tripping over a tree branch, she stumbled for a moment before righting herself and continuing to dash at the top of her speed. He was getting dangerously close and she wasn’t sure if she was going to be able to make it to the trees in time. She was going to try, though, because she couldn’t just give up. That would look back. Getting an idea, she pivoted on her heels, making a complete ninety degrees before continuing to run. Hopefully she surprised him enough to get to the edge of the clearing before he caught her.
((There isn't too much that I can write until he's caught her, lol.))
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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 Jul 16, 2008 15:03:24 GMT -5
Who was the tricky one, now? Didn’t she know weaving wouldn’t help her? In fact, it might even slow her down a bit, seeing as he was going in a dead straight line. T’rid grinned as he heard her giggle again. Were all girls like that? Eternal gigglers, girls were; they just couldn’t stop, could they? Or at least, all the girls he had met so far had been too giggly. Liassa, what with her running-giggling-style, was actually an improvement. Well, not much of one, but at least there was some improvement going on there, right? T’rid shook his head, dispersing the thoughts as he ran. Automatically registering her movements and trying to anticipate her took concentration, after all. Girls had a teensy-weensy bit more brains than Thread did, although it was a close thing.
Ah, she stumbled. Over a tree branch. That was what she got for not looking at her feet, though. Not that he was looking at his feet, either, but at least he wasn’t tripping all over the place. T’rid grinned to himself, mentally touching Corinth again. The bronze was a sleepy wakefulness now. Where are you? Why aren’t you wearing your shirt? came the plaintive voice. Ah, his shirt. He had almost forgotten about that. The girl took off, I’m running after her. We’ll be back in a moment, just make sure nobody steals my stuff, hmm, Cor? If they do, bite their—and here was inserted some very ‘colorful vocabulary,’ to put it in Liassa’s words—Off. There was a testy silence, and then, Ah…yes. Very well. T’rid was about to reply. But then—
She swiveled on her heel and was off in a totally different direction. Overshooting slightly, T’rid turned a bit late, catching himself from a fall by pushing his fingertips against the ground, and ran on, his breath coming a bit faster now. Seriously, just because he was a Bronzer didn’t mean he had unlimited stamina. The girl was so. Sharding. Close. All he had to do was lunge, but the wrong lunge would make him fall flat, embarrass himself, AND, to cap it all, he would loose ground. Shard her.
Well, okay, he’d risk it, but if he embarrassed himself, he’d just have to take out his anger on a tree or something. T’rid mentally calculated, his head cocked to one side as he thought briefly, aimed, and sprang at Liassa. He was right; it WAS much more difficult to jump on a moving figure that had a brain than to just tell Corinth to flame some falling Thread. For a split second, the young man thought he’d missed and he’d better get the Shards up before Liassa could turn around and see his mistake, but then he had her around the waist, and they were falling. For a moment, the shock of landing so abruptly rendered T’rid silent. Then he laughed, keeping his arms tightly around Liassa. He didn’t trust her not to bolt again. “Didn’t I tell you I wouldn’t give up?”
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