World Apart (J'ash)

[Requiem]

He watched the fingers before his face with a certain blank fascination. The steam rising from the heated water obscured everything in frothy tendrils. His long fingers moved through them, stirring around the clouds but also leaving sworls and whirls in their wake. Faolan's eyes looked past - through - fingers suddenly gone still to the baths beyond. Almost as if afraid someone would catch him in his moment of extreme curiosity and judge him for it. Or yell at him for wasting time on frivolous things.

The young man's lips twitched into a bittersweet smile. There was little point in paying attention to the inconsequentials of the life and people here. Everyone and everything that truly meant anything to him was...gone. Some strange loyalty to the place of Wrenth's hatching - some unknowable lure to the place where his twin had died, her blue dashed against the cliffs - drew him here like a syren call out of the pleasant obscurity of a fisher's life at Blossom. Almost pleasant. Cherry.

He would think of Cherry no more than he would of Wrenth.

That decision guided his steps forward, deeper into the clouded, steamy murkiness of the communal baths. He welcomed the shroud of white as his shirt fell in a pool of fabric around his feet. No one would see the ugly welts left on his back unless they were close. His curls were long enough to conceal a good portion of them anyway, but he didn't yet loosen them.

The slender man with his almost feminine - certainly androgynous - figure slipped into the nearest pool. He'd get the sweetsand later. Such a glorious taste of freedom, this, the luxury of soaking a little before scrubbing himself. The luxury of a pool of heated water. He slid further down with a sigh. Faolan closed the light blue eyes that once had been called ice. There was nothing of that cold, emotionless regard in them now. Scoured out of him. He lifted a leg and wiggled his toes just above the surface of the water, then wrote his name with the sweep of his leg through the steam above his own personal pool.

His now. See? He'd claimed it.

Of a sudden his leg crashed back into the water and his eyes darted about, looking to see if anyone had been watching, had noticed his audacity. Of course he couldn't claim the pool. It seemed that there was no one about to notice, but his heart was still up in his throat and he hunkered down, feeling queasy. Maybe he should just get up, get the sweetsand and be done with it. Letting himself get too carried away.

[Shiny]

"Go 'way!" A tug to a lock of his long, straight hair made him wince and shoot a look at the offending creature sitting on his left shoulder. The Brown firelizard chirruped pleasantly, the lock of hair gripped in arms that looked as though they sported festive red gloves. Tux blinked at him with innocent blue eyes; J'ash just couldn't get mad at that. The two of them simply want to keep you company. The Bluerider sighed at Craivaruth's two cents and looked over at the less playful Brown flit sitting on his other shoulder, Vomit. The two of them refused to leave him alone. J'ash didn't particularly mind their company, but other people might. This was a public bath, after all. But he hadn't the heart to send them away...

It was odd that there weren't that many people present. That simply meant less people to feel self-conscious in front of. Yes, J'ash was flirty and quite sexual, but he did indeed feel shy standing naked in front of strangers, to some degree. It was mostly the scars that decorated him that he felt conscious of. He made an effort to put it out of his mind.

A smile found its way on J'ash's face as he got deeper into the bathing rooms; the swirls of dancing steam were getting thicker and bolder. He found himself wanting to play with them. A different kind of movement caught his metallic gray eyes. Forgetting about his firelizards, he observed the man that had caught his eye. Huh, it appeared that this man had the same idea he did; J'ash watched the fascinated man with his own fascination. Far enough away from the man to be out of earshot if whispering, he turned to Tux and quietly shushed him. He wouldn't have to worry about Vomit giving him away, but Tux was something else. The Brown crooned quietly in response before continuing to play with His' hair.

Silently, J'ash began to follow the man. He wasn't close enough to be deemed creepy - he was respectful enough to give someone he didn't know lots of space. Why he was even following the man to begin with was somewhat of a mystery. Something was drawing him to the man. Perhaps it was his figure, one similar to his own; slim, androgynous. The man appeared to be around a similar height, maybe a little taller. Attractive - indeed he was, but there was something else that was drawing J'ash to him. Perhaps it was the eccentric behaviour he was witnessing. The man suddenly stopped his odd actions as if afraid someone would catch him doing it. How ironic.

The young Bluerider stopped just a few meters away when the man got into a pool. Well, this was awkward. If the man turned around now and saw him staring, he would undoubtedly be labeled creepy.

With a shrug of his shoulders, his firelizards obediently left their perches in a synchronized dive (10 points for swooping into elegant glides). Quickly, J'ash pulled off his shirt and pants, letting the articles find their own places on the ground.

The poor man never saw it coming.

"Cannonballllll!" The spherical, ball-reminiscent form that was J'ash hit the water with a loud splash. Despite being underweight, much water was still displaced in the form of large waves. Sure, this probably wasn't the most appropriate place to have done that, but J'ash really needed to relax. Plus, this man had an eccentric aura about him, and he had to do something equally eccentric. An eye for an eye, fight fire with fire kind of thing. Really, that was the gist of the process of whatever thought had gone into the action before it had been executed.

Rising quickly to the surface (seeing as he hadn't dove into such deep water to begin with), J'ash gratefully took in a lungful of air. He shook his soaked hair to get it out of his face, although it just stuck to the sides and across his forehead in the end. He moved the little extra distance to sit beside the stranger and smiled his best, cheeriest smile. He wasn't actually feeling that cheery, but something told him that his victim the man sitting next to him kind of needed that happiness. "Hi! Sorry if I got you all wet."

His gray eyes lit up as he took in the man's face. Just like his body, his face held a certain feminine beauty to it. Long, fawn-coloured curls were tied back, lying smoothly against welted skin. J'ash's smile turned just slightly flirty as his gaze moved to those thickly-framed beautiful light blue eyes. "My name's J'ash!" he said with the smile still stretching his face. "And yours?"

[Requiem]

It would have been ridiculous to say that Faolan was unaware that there were others in the baths. You could always bet that you weren't alone. In fact, if the baths were completely empty, it was probably a good idea to turn around and leave. There's a reason for everything and this was one you probably wouldn't like to know. Much less experience.

Still and all, there's a big difference between knowing that others are around and knowing that you specifically are being watched. In this matter the former bluerider was most definitely oblivious. Oh, he had those creepy feelings that people get when they can sense people looking at them, but Faolan was paranoid. Exceedingly paranoid. There had been a time when he'd been convinced he was always being watched. (To be fair, at the time that probably was true.) While now it wasn't - and he knew that - the residual feeling of eyes on him at all hours hadn't disappeared. Like learned behaviors, it lingered as a ghost of his days trapped in the hell reserved for the dragonless taken by Fort. As if living with this emptiness wasn't hellish enough.

No, the first direct knowledge that the candidate had of J'ash was the sound of bare feet slapping stone at a brisk pace. The man hunched and angled his shoulders toward the rushing person in the seconds of warning he had. Not so broken that he didn't still respond to sudden threats like any other trained in the wars. Selenitas he may have been, but he'd finished his weyrlinghood at Fort. Instinctual reactions were hard to eradicate.

The whoop and the splash as the body hit the water, though, got nothing from Faolan but shocked stillness. Water cascaded down his face. When his brain started working again, he wiped the water away from his eyes with a hand, peering at the blonde boy between his fingers. A nod greeted the apology. "You did. But it's okay," he stated quietly. The hand lowered back to the water. Something of an uneasy smile greeted the broad one that didn't seem quite genuine. What was this kid doing, anyway? Faolan didn't ask.

From what he could see of the bluerider, this J'ash was built a lot like Faolan himself was. And entirely too friendly, to boot. The wher candidate shifted awkwardly under J'ash's expression. He would never be able to explain how, but he knew when a man found him interesting. Women, too. It usually...didn't end well. People adapted for survival, and reading emotions was necessary for the dragonless. "Faolan," he offered.

There were other pools around. The former dragonrider considered mentioning it, but it was rude. And, well, J'ash probably already knew that. Instead he resorted to fidgeting with his hands beneath the surface of the water. "Did you need something?" he asked finally. Mostly because he couldn't think of a thing to say.

[Shiny]

J'ash's grin was just as amused as it was friendly. Well of course it was okay that he'd gotten him all wet, they were in the baths! Still, he appreciated the lack of a negative response to a socially abnormal action.

The Bluerider tilted his head at the pretty man while absently combing his wet hair over one shoulder, observing his awkward shifting. Oh, was he making him uncomfortable..? But I haven't even entered his personal space yet, he thought with a momentary pout hijacking his lighter expression. That wasn't going to stop him from trying to socialize with this man, though. Rather, he was going to try harder. He certainly seemed like he needed some cheering up. He definitely looked like he needed to have some life breathed into him, too, but J'ash doubted he could accomplish that so soon, if at all.

"Faolaaaan! That's a pretty name!" he smiled, leaning in towards the other man a little. "'S pretty just like you. Your mother must've been a psychic, knowing you'd be pretty. Was she pretty? I bet she was pretty." Now he was rambling. Maybe that was because he wasn't exactly sure how to defrost Faolan, or perhaps he was just trying to fill awkward silence. If J'ash felt awkward at all - which he did - it didn't show on his face or in his body language.

At the feebly-sounded question, J'ash blinked and then threw his head back in a laugh. "Yes, I do need something." He looked Faolan directly in the eyes after opening his own. "I need you to smile for me. A genuine smile. I'm not leaving this bath until I get one~ Just one like this. See?" And he smiled one of his best smiles. Although he wasn't in a fantastic mood to start with, the smile was one of his most genuine yet.

"So! Tell me something about yourself," J'ash nudged the other man with his elbow lightly. "Do you have a mind mate?" If his name was Faolan, he definitely didn't have a dragon. But perhaps he had a wher, or a firelizard, or a salamandyr... "I'm Bonded to Craivaruth. He's a Blue, but he's literally half blue and half green, so we often get picked on. I guess it doesn't help that I have this kind of build, either," he laughed. "I also have two Brown firelizards, Vomit and Tux."

[Requiem]

An idea occurred to Faolan. His eyes were fixed firmly down on the water, but he allowed himself to sway just ever-so-slightly toward J'ash. Slow. Slowly. Closing the small distance until he could tell. You didn't have to get too close to smell the alcohol on a person's breath, but you still had to be closer than he currently was to J'ash. (The babble had no explanation in the candidate's mind if not inebriation. Why would this strange person be going on about how pretty Faolan's mother was, otherwise?) But no. Now that he was close enough, there definitely wasn't any alcohol on J'ash's breath.

Just as subtly as he'd tried to inch closer, he shifted back away from the other. Such an odd one. "She's old, plump and naggy," the fisher responded softly. There was nothing in the tone of the words to suggest he disliked his mother. Perhaps even a touch of tenderness. Mostly, though, what came out was mild confusion. What was J'ash going on about? "Faolan means wolf in some...old Earth language. That's what they told Dad. He named me. I'm not sure what a wolf is." Because it was difficult for the candidate to leave a question unanswered, even when he very much wanted to ignore the whole thing.

The man's eyes were wide and focused unwaveringly on J'ash, even as he shrunk back from the loud laughter. What was going on? A-a smile? The idea that the other refused to leave at all until he did was off-putting. Scary actually if truth be told. He tried. He really did. The corners of his mouth turned up in that painful way that characterizes a forced smile, and he even showed teeth. But he looked more like an uncomfortable animal trying to get whatever was bothering him to go away by the display - which was more or less the truth - than someone actually smiling.

He jumped slightly at the nudge of the elbow. Hands smoothed over his thighs in a nervous gesture beneath the water. "Uh..." But before he could really ask what it was that J'ash actually wanted to know, the rider was plowing on. Faolan flinched visibly at the name of the dragon, his oddly pale skin - it had refused to darken no matter how many hours a day he spent beneath the suns - paling further until it was nearly translucent. But the rider didn't stop there. No. He had to continue, talking about two firelizards, too. The candidate bit his lip hard enough for a trickle of blood to start making its way down his chin.

He didn't notice it.

"No," he breathed softly. "None." Just shredded holes where they'd been, like straying on the edge of a giant whirlpool in the middle of the ocean. If the currents caught you there was no hope, and just the idea of mindmates pushed him closer to that edge. He wouldn't speak of them. Especially not Wrenth and Cherry. That blue flit whose name he refused to remember had abandonded him so it wasn't as bad, thinking of that one. Not giving J'ash the whole truth, though, was making him unbearably anxious.

"Wh-what do you want to know?" Please, please let's get off the topic of mindmates.

[Shiny]

Silvery eyes transformed from cheerful to surprised to flirty as the other male started to subtly shift closer. It was surprising that Faolan would act this way given what seemed to be his character, but whatever. J'ash was glad for the change of heart. The Bluerider leaned in slightly and smiled, though the smile faltered when the nervous man shrunk away again. Well, that just wasn't nice, teasing him like that! J'ash scooted closer to the other man to make up for the distance that had been lost. "No need to be shy, I don't bite," he encouraged softly. With a pout gracing his lips, he tilted his head at Faolan. "I'm sure she was pretty at least once. It was supposed to be a compliment!" The following laugh had a nervous undertone to it. "Hmm, wolf huh? I've never heard of such a thing. But it sounds terrific. Sure would like to meet one, wouldn't you? Find out what it's like, and all that."

A... kind of scary expression spread on Faolan's face... Oh, wait, was that supposed to be... a smile? J'ash's kind expression faltered for a moment. He blinked. Was this guy actually trying to smile, or was that a joke? Because it was hilarious. The pretty Bluerider started roaring with laughter, having to wrap his arms around his middle to keep from exploding. A few tears squeezed their way from the corners of his tightly-shut eyes, and he brought a hand up to wipe them away. "You've got to be kidding me," he said breathlessly, holding his right side, where a stitch had formed. "That was your smile?"

He then realized that perhaps Faolan would be feeling self-conscious, especially considering the fact that he'd just laughed right at it, and what type of person the other man seemed to be. "Don't you worry! I'll get you smiling in no time! You just have to keep trying. Let yourself relax. Do what makes you happy. I guarantee you'll smile then." And then he beamed, as if giving another prime example of the goal he'd set for Faolan.

The words flooding out of J'ash's mouth died in his throat at Faolan's reaction. J'ash's eyes widened - was that blood running down the man's chin? Why was he so pale? "Hey, are you okay? You're bleeding..." Genuinely concerned, the Bluerider scooted just a little closer and raised his hand out of the water to gingerly wipe at the blood with a thumb. He stared into Faolan's eyes with a gentle, worried expression. "If you aren't feeling well, you should go back home and rest."

Biting his own lip (not nearly hard enough to draw blood), J'ash retracted his hand to wipe off the blood in the water. "Hmm, I want to know why you're so nervous all the time... and why you suddenly aren't feeling so well. You know, if you want, Craivaruth and I could fly you back home, or to the infirmary, if you want. Just say the word! Now where is that sweetsand..?" because even if you were sick, you still needed to get clean. The faster he found the cleaning material, the faster Faolan could get out, and the faster he could get home to rest.

[Requiem]

The candidate shifted slightly but forced himself not to fidget too much. His fingers clasped together hard under the water, a slight flush in his cheeks due to the close proximity of the rider. It did in fact occur to him that he might have caused this by trying to get close enough to smell the stranger's breath; perhaps he'd given the wrong impression. Regardless, though, Faolan didn't feel he had the right to tell anyone to back off so he simply endured nervously, his eyes focused on the water just in front of him.

"N-not really," he murmured in response to the question that was almost definitely rhetorical. "Father would have picked something dangerous." The words were barely voiced. Indeed, had J'ash not been so close as he was, he likely wouldn't have heard them at all. But then the bluerider was laughing ever-so-loudly, and Faolan visibly jerked. When he realized just what had brought on the laughter a small furrow formed between his brows. The candidate couldn't help it; tears slowly tracked down his lowered face.

He'd never leave this bath if he couldn't smile the way J'ash wanted him to. (There was no reason to disbelieve what the man had said.) Though he knew the words that followed were meant to be reassuring, the broad smile that J'ash shot him only increased his despair further. Was that what he was supposed to look like? Of course, most of the worry over this order that the bluerider had given him was buried beneath the loss that threatened to consume him shortly thereafter.

He shook his head silently, hands clasped tightly before him. No, not okay. Chin lifted up slightly, a confused look in the man's eyes at J'ash's gentle touch. What was he doing? "I..." Was he feeling well? No, not really. But it was not so much different than how he always felt. No. Faolan closed his eyes, the lashes still glistening with his tears. Why must he ask such questions?

Before Faolan could attempt to pull himself together enough to obey, though, J'ash mentioned riding on his dragon and the dragonless man shuddered. "No, please. I can't. Anything else, just don't make me..." Another shudder. His eyes reopened to refocus on J'ash earnestly. "I...Wrenth. Was mine." Haltingly. Speaking the name was terribly difficult for him, though not so terrible as being forced to ride another dragon.

His eyes slid toward the edge of the pool. "I'm sorry. I try. They never liked me. I was never right. Too..." A hand came up, waving at some concept he couldn't quite vocalize, as if he could somehow draw it right out of the air. "Then when they were finished, too timid." A soft shudder at that. "So they sold me back here." The words were soft. Faolan never left a question unanswered, not even the one about the sweetsand. He pointed to the alcove that held it.