Munchies [Tag M'ta]

[archenstone]

KaliMine? Are you sure you want to travel down there? I can't get there and its much nicer up here!Uminth's mind voice lingered with traces or worry as Kalina made her way deeper into the jungle. I can't find something to eat up there Uminth. Don't worry, I'll be fine. I'll just find some fruit, eat, and bring some back! She pushed some branches aside as she looked for something. Man was she hungry! It wasn't the Weyr's fault. After all this was better than stomach cramps or death. They needed more foraging though! Kalina was determined to find something to eat and bring some back.

It wasn't to long before she found a more open area and came across a red fruit tree. She plucked a ripe fruit and bit into it. That was perfect! Uminth love...do you want to try fishing again? I think you've started to get the hang of it. She felt her mind mate's enthusiasm rise.

Fish? You think so? I can fish! I'll catch em and drop them at the Weyr. It will be good! Kalina sensed Uminth moving a little away to swim and snap fish. Grinning with the first sense of privacy in a long time she sat back against the tree and munched.

[Requiem]

Having seen Uminth's departure, M'ta and Behruth were in agreement. The greenpair most certainly should not be venturing alone into the wilds. Firstly, it was just dangerous as a general rule, with all the animals lurking. Secondly, if someone was trying to poison the people of Selenitas, it was just possible that they might be hiding amongst the trees. Even wherries could be a problem; they'd attacked both M'ta and Savvy not so long ago. Get enough of them hungry enough and that could be quite gruesome.

Thus the straps went on, meticulously placed and checked, and M'ta submitted to the restraints of the riding helmet and jacket. Maybe not necessary here, but he tended to like to be prepared. They took to the skies not long after Uminth's departure. Touching down in a more open part of the forest, Behruth wended toward the river, his gleaming, mahogany hide glittering through the trunks as he moved. Almost too big for this, though thankfully his size was mostly length as opposed to width.

Tugging off the helmet, M'ta shook out his softly curling dark hair, cut short less than a month before. The carefully groomed short mustache and beard added age to his face, which had thickened a little with maturity and good health. In fact, in the past months since Impressing Ruth, M'ta had blossomed, growing a good three inches and gaining muscle mass. His body had evolved from a lean, predatory musculature into a more catlike suppleness. Treading carefully, his clothing melded with the greenery. He came to her tree and tilted his head to look up at her, squinting against the sunlight. "Don't you know you're not supposed to be out here alone?" the young man questioned, the deep voice rumbling through his barrel chest. Short he might still be, but he was definitely coming into his own.

"I mean, I don't even wander alone into the jungles these days," he added. It might have sounded a bit arrogant, but truthfully he just meant that it was a common practice for him before and he'd never cared overly much for rules that didn't suit him. Which suggested she should probably pay attention to this one, right?

Behruth found Uminth not far downstream, thoroughly absorbed in her fish-catching game. He padded closer and arched his neck, peering over her shoulder to see just what it was she was doing. Are you trying to catch the shinies? Behruth asked her curiously, unmindful of any surprise he might cause her for suddenly showing up like that. They look really fast! Oh yes, this game definitely had his interest. Anything that glittered so prettily must be captured and added to his collection. It simply must!

[archenstone]

Kalina had been busy plucking red fruit. A small bundle of the fruit made a bulge against her lower back where they pressed against the sack she had. By now her hair had slipped its confines and was acting fluffy and unruly. She was brushing it out of her eyes when she heard a slight rustle of leaves and a voice.

"M'ta?" She looked down and a smile brightened her tan features. She had cut her hair as well shortly after beginning to fly. It was stubborn though and has already grown to touch her shoulders. Unable to tie it back, Kalina has found short hair to be the most unruly annoying aspect of dragon riding. She had changed in other ways as well. The once some what bulky muscles of a boisterous girl had smoothed into a supple strength. She still wore pants and blouses often but it had become quickly apparent that she needed new shirts as her body changed. The russet blouse she wore today was slightly unbuttoned against the humidity of the jungle.

She wrapped confidant hands around the tree limb and swung down, dangling for a moment before dropping to the ground. The drop wasn't large but she allowed her knees to bend to the impact. Light fluffy hair hid her eyes for a moment before she stood and brushed it away. Her bright tawny eyes reflected her smile.

"I know but old habits die hard sometimes." Her smile faded into a slight grin. "It's not something I practice oftern though, not these days. Want one?" She offered a fruit.

"So what have you been up to?" She asked, leaning against the tree trunk. Well, it shouldn't matter that she had been alone. She wasn't alone now.

Mean while Uminth was mostly submerged in the cool water. Her snout was facing the current and her jaws where parted slightly. At Behruths voice her jaws snapped shut, splashing water away from her nose. Behruth?! She swung her neck around to see the brown looking over her shoulder. Her eyes whirled in happiness. Would you like to catch shinies with me? I'll show you how! She hummed for a moment before sinking into the water once more.

The shinies are fast but if you sink into the water and let it run over your lower jaw they come to pick at your tongue. Then you snap shut and catch them! They are called fish and KaliMine likes to cook them. I eat some though. They don't fill you up but they taste different. Come try with me! Uminth made room to let her brother come in the water too.

[Requiem]

The brownweyrling's frown didn't fade, although that could have been a result of the sun in his eyes rather than due to the present company. He stepped back a pace to give her room, noting the light landing with some distant part of his mind. She was someone who could get around, which might be good information to know later on. M'ta cocked a brow at her grin, his own expression something of a wry half-smile that betrayed his confusion at her warm greeting.

"Mmm," he grunted, nodding in acknowledgement of the truth of her statement. Old habits certainly did die hard. He shrugged out of the riding jacket, already open against the heat, the sleeveless light green tunic highlighting the strength of his arms...and drawing some attention to the lighter networking of chafing scars at his wrists. He folded the jacket and set it to one side. Too hot for such things. "Well, that's good. Because once they start hunting here, the predators will get hungrier, and things that would normally leave you alone..." M'ta shrugged expressively.

He eyed the fruit for a long moment. Instinct and past experience informed his expression with a touch of wariness. Hungry? Oh, always, nowadays - though if that was a matter of his growth, the dearth of food now that T'rid had finally displayed a hint of intelligence and stopped taking tithes, or Behruth's weyrling hungers it wasn't certain. Maybe all three. But this was Kalina, and she'd just picked them, so the risk was minimal. Nodding, he took the fruit from her hand, turning it lightly over in his own. His eyes came up to meet her bright ones and his expression relaxed just a little. A tentative smile.

"Mostly just finding ways to help out around here. Behruth can't seem to pass up a chance to help someone or chat." No trace of distaste in that statement, as there undoubtedly would have been a few months ago. "Most of the time I'm running for the kitchens and the infirmary or just lending an extra hand at the creche. They adore Behruth, the kids do. Like a big, fluffy playtoy." Taking a bite of the fruit, he licked the juice from his lips and nodded her direction. "And you? How've you been passing the time?"

Uminth! he returned, half-teasingly, nuzzling her lightly as her head snaked around to regard him. Easing up closer, he watched her drift lower beneath the water with some interest. You catch shinies by dunking yourself? But she was already explaining, and he thought about what she said, realizing that this might just work. If they liked tongues. And didn't mind teeth. Teeth could be scary. Wouldn't they be afraid of the...

He backed up, a little agitated. Why would you want to eat the shinies, Uminth?! His mindvoice wasn't loud, but the distress was noticeable. Yours shouldn't cook them. They're shinies. As if that explained everything. His tail flicked. Why, Uminth?

[archenstone]

Kalina's eyes took a moment to travel over M'ta before looking back up at him. He had certainly changed...and spending time with kids? Yes, M'ta had changed quite a bit. She remembered him as she first met him and decided she liked the differences. She noticed that his smile seemed to come a little easier than before.

"Most of the time I have been working with Uminth or helping in the stables. We fly the route I used to run in the mornings and she's starting to have an easier time now. She's been rather obsessive to fly like the other greens. I think she does just fine though. I've also been in the kitchen's alot. I fried up some stuff and the kitchen staff where eating it like mad till food got short." She let her eyes roam around them for a moment as she listened to the jungle's sounds.

"So what brought you out here? Surely you didn't come out just for me." Her tone took a more playful quality.

Meanwhile Uminth was eying Behruth curiously. Please don't be upset Behruth. They taste really good. Perhaps if you brought some to yours he would clean the shinies for you. Trust me...if you don't clean them they stick really bad and....ooo! Mine has even better shinies! She sent Behruth an image of a light silver bracelet with dragons etched in. I think Mine intended to give you one because you like shiny things. We haven't seen you and your much though so she wasn't able to.

[Requiem]

Oh, that was right...Uminth had a thicker sort of body that didn't take to flying very well. He recalled that Behruth had found that rather sad. The brown absolutely loved flying! Even if he wasn't particularly good at it just yet. M'ta, however, was certain that this wouldn't be so for long, and he was equally - if secretly - hopeful that Uminth's stockiness would give way to length as she continued to grow and hopefully make flying easier for her. Behruth's regard for the green was contagious, after all. Or maybe he just cared a little more now because Ruth was in his life, and their weyrling class was kind of like a den. Kalina and Uminth certainly qualified as den - those you chose to treat as family.

Kalina's question caught him flatfooted, and something in the tone of her voice caused his dark skin to flush a little. He was...noticing...people more than he used to, especially the greenriders, and suspected it had something to do with Behruth's aging. Where once his glance would have noticed Kalina's attributes with complete objectivity, now he found that some pleased him. The dance of short hair around her face, for instance, the healthiness of her body and the color of her eyes. It wasn't that it was a strong set of feelings...just that he'd never qualified traits before as pleasant or unpleasant, really. Different could be unnerving.

"Uh." He cleared his throat, then, his dark eyes meeting hers. "No, that was about the only reason, actually," he answered truthfully, if only because he couldn't think up anything to say but the absolute truth. "Behruth and I saw you leave and we decided you shouldn't be alone. That's about it." To mask his unease, he took another bite from the fruit and chewed slowly.

Shinies should not be eaten! Behruth insisted adamantly, feeling faintly ill at the knowledge that Uminth already had eaten some. But her next words quite adequately distracted him, and he eased closer to her again. Yours has a present for me? the dragon repeated eagerly. Very, very pretty shiny. Sliver shiny. I like sliver. Relaying the message and image to His, he bounced happily in place. Uminth says Hers wants me to have the sliver! Silver, Ruth. Yes. Yes. Silver, Behruth agreed impatiently. Isn't it a pretty silver? That it certainly is.

[archenstone]

Kalina listened to him with interest as he told her the honest truth. So he cared enough to not let her get eaten? She simply looked at him with a soft smile and said, "Well....I appreciate it. It would have been rather bad if something happened because I was too stubborn to ask for company." She pulled the bag around to look in it and count.

"Since you're here with me, would you like to help me gather some more stuff?" She indicated the bunches of red fruit above them. "I could use the help...and... I guess I kinda miss our times roaming out here." There, she admitted it, she missed his company a little. Just a little... She thought.

Liar, you missed him more than that! Uminth chuckled with her mind voice...and blew bubbles in the water in merriment. Kalina blushed slightly as she listened to Uminth's unbridled merriment. Stop Uminth, it ain't that bad! Besides, if you say anything he might go away again! You might embarrass him into staying away and he is right. We shouldn't be here alone.

Uminth hummed in the water to make it vibrate. She was having a good day! So Behruth...how about we eat no shinies....but we catch them and maybe yours can clean some for you? I'll even help you drop them off if we get a bunch. We could give everyone shinies and make them happy! She flicked water at him playfully with her tail. Come on, it will be great fun!

[Requiem]

"Bad, yes," he commented dryly, a touch of humor in his tone at that. Was she always so given to understatement? He couldn't recall...probably because M'ta tended to pay more attention to people that he considered threats as opposed to your average southerner. He was intimately familiar with the habits of people like Uu'n, Kalierre, Aliscia and Ka'rys, for example, most of whom were probably barely aware that he existed with the notable exception of the bronzerider. Strange that the people he actually cared to choose to spend time with received so much less scrutiny.

Turning toward the trees at her invitation, and because he really wasn't much for standing around, M'ta stilled and cast a glance over his shoulder, brow elevated in mild curiosity. Clearly she hadn't been avoiding the forests, so she couldn't miss just being out here. Which left she missed being out here with him. That was...almost funny. He distinctly remembered wanting to tie her to a tree and leave her here last time they'd ventured into the jungles together. To show her around, of all things. Had it really been so long? "I suppose time makes everything look better," he responded, unable to completely mask his amusement. Kalina wasn't nearly so intolerable this time around as when they'd first met. It might just be due to adjusting to Behruth's evenly joyful attitude, however. He found the chirpy types didn't make him grind his teeth as much as they had, although bouncy still caused annoyance.

Slipping the remainder of the fruit partially into his mouth to free up his hands, he leapt, catching a lower branch and contracting the muscles in his stomach to propel him upward. He landed in a crouch and sprung up to yet a higher branch before scampering across a series of branches just a little too wide apart for it to be called walking. M'ta leaned against the central trunk and extracted the fruit to call down to Kalina. "Get ready to catch, or you're going to need a bath here soon." His smile was lost to the shadows, but it came through clear enough in his voice. The brownweyrling began raining fruit down on Kalina.

Behruth regarded Uminth uncertainly. That won't hurt the shinies? I don't want to hurt the shinies. The splash had him spluttering, though, and the brown snapped playfully at her tail. Hey. That's not fair. I didn't get you all wet. He dipped his head to nose water in her direction, his wings flaring wide for balance in that awkward half-bowed position. The young brown scampered forward in the water and crouched a little, tail twitching almost like a feline's. Bet you can't beat me, little Uminth, he challenged teasingly.