Present? (Ka'rys)

[Administrator]

What possessed you to even make this in the first place? Aslath asked, amusement in her mind-tone. Shmee flushed, looking down at the emerald green shirt she had sewn, but still keeping it far away from Shei, who was looking at it with longing blue eyes.

"Well, I had made about a million for S'rei, Shei, and Miguel already, and I figured that Ka'rys would need one, too. He is really in need of a makeover, you know," she told Aslath with a shrug. This was most definitely true. The man had the most hideous taste in clothing, so Shmee had used her latest stress-reliever as a way to fix this. While she didn't like for him as the Weyrleader, she knew that she couldn't have a Weyrleader who was dressed this badly. She needed to redeem him, and maybe he would look better to everyone as a pretty figurehead. Also, Shmee knew that people were more accepting of others when their appearance was nice, and a nice appearance was something that Ka'rys did not possess. Well, his own features, maybe, but certainly not his clothing. Having a Weyrleader with bad taste was not an option. This shirt would be a good way to make his style begin to change for good.

"Ka'rys, can I come in?" Shmee hollered into the little cavern of his weyr. This was not a place often trod in by Shmee. If they ever had anything to discuss, it was usually in her own weyr. Anxiously, she one-handedly tucked the sleeves of the shirt behind the body, and folded it over as neatly as she could. It was a very nice shirt. Rather plain, but the color was very nice. The tunic had loose string at the collar, as well, for a light form of decoration. She had done quite well with this one, and it would suit Ka'rys quite well.

"Dadadadada," Shei babbled, a little bit of spittle forming in the corner of her mouth. Those sounds were little Shei's favorite, much to Shmee's amusement. Though she would have preferred it to be "Mamamamama," she figured Shei would recognize that more in time. Shmee smiled-- until Shei started to reach for the shirt again.

"No, Shei," she said sternly. This was a word Shei understood, and immediately, the waterworks began. The wailing would probably be enough to make watch-whers howl, so at least his was a good call for Ka'rys, if he hadn't heard her before. "Shhh, love, it's all right," she murmured, rubbing her cheek against Shei's red curls. She'd use her hands, except her free hand had a shirt in it that she didn't want Shei to get a hold of. But the babe's downy hair was so sweet, too. She had just taken a bath earlier that morning, so it didn't smell bad, nor was it dirty. Shards, little Shei was a sweetheart...

[glamourie]

The sound of an infant wailing at the top of its lungs jolted Ka'rys out of his thoughts and the bronzerider actually jumped, splashing slightly in the process. So much for trying to figure out the best way to organize the Maelstrom Wing to accommodate Aliscia and Cezine's pregnancies. He blinked twice and then climbed out of the bathing pool before retrieving a towel to dry himself off with before stalking - stark naked - out of the bathing section and into the main room of his weyr. It never occurred to Ka'rys to find the behavior odd, considering that ... well.. his clothing was in the wardrobe, not the bathing room, and he was weyrbred; most people at Weyrs were anything but scandalized by nudity, especially for the few brief moments it took for him to walk from one side of the room to the other. And if they were, the person shouldn't have been coming to his private rooms any way.

That, at least, was his thought as he stepped out of the bathing room, towel-drying his hair. However, when he saw who the source of the wailing was (or rather, on that particular occasion, the one holding the screaming child rather than actually being said whiner), he paled visibly and wound the towel around his waist in an attempt at modesty - more for Shei's sake than Shmee's. He squinted slightly as a million excuses for why Shmee would ever come to his weyr flew through his mind, before his thoughts finally latched onto one word - a name: Savitri. Somehow, Shmee had found out about how much... time... he'd been spending with Savitri and was there to throw a tantrum. And she'd brought Shei to keep him from wringing her skinny neck. He was going to get yelled at and humiliated, and he could do nothing to stop it because Shmee was onto him and realized bringing the baby would prevent him from throttling her. Shards!

"Uhm."

Eloquence, thy name was Ka'rys. Fortunately for him, he managed to avoid blushing as he edged across the weyr toward his wardrobe. Were it anyone else at Selenitas, he might have been more embarrassed, but... nothing Shmee hadn't seen before, disgustingly enough; scars and all. Only the one on the inside of his left arm was new, and he did not intend to explain it even if the Weyrwoman asked. He doubted she would. Shmee was not exactly aware of people other than herself and, for once, Ka'rys was glad of that. Explaining why he was fighting with a candidate wasn't his idea of a good time. He was more embarrassed by that than the fact that he lost, in retrospect. He usually killed in the first few blows, so it was a good thing he hadn't won. Even in the south, murder wasn't exactly condoned.

"What can I do for you, Weyrwoman?" he asked as he retrieved various articles of clothing from his wardrobe. Without turning back to look at her, he dropped the towel and pulled on the loose black pants, then buckled them with a leather belt that had most definitely seen better days but in a past life was probably rather nice. For all the world, he looked to be oblivious to Shei's wailing. Infants were not a new subject on him at all, and it actually showed in the level of comfort he had with the sound. No, his discomfort came from the fact that he was fairly sure he was fixing to get into a fight. How had she found out? Had Savitri told her? His gaze flicked accusingly to Ciceroth, who was out on the weyrledge sunning and looking for all the world as if he was sound asleep; typical. No help from him. "It isn't like you to come to visit, who have I offended now? I will write them a very enthusiastic and sincere-sounding apology." Sarcasm probably wouldn't win him any points, but shard it, he was nervous. As an after thought, he cast a glance toward the baby and added, "Hello, little Shei."

[Administrator]

Shmee visibly twitched when Ka'rys emerged from his little hidey hole-- stark naked. ...what? Had he been bathing? How on Earth had she managed to come at the worst possible time?! Not only did she feel awkward that she was around a naked man (Ka'rys, at that!), but she also felt slightly jittery. She stepped back, smoothing out Shei's back as she shifted the babe to her stomach, using her almost as she would a shield. By the time she managed to wrench her gaze away from him, he was already wrapping the towel around himself. Thank you, Faranth. Still, the color had managed to drain from her face completely. Unconsciously, she began to grind her teeth, a nervous habit that she hadn't seemed to be able to break. Slowly letting her gaze rise back to the man, she figured that she'd have no trouble with not looking at his torso (since she wasn't interested in him at all). However, at the sight of his scars, her morbid curiosity took control of her eyes.

What was it with men having scars? S'rei was scarred, and now she saw that Ka'rys was, but maybe it was a Northern thing? What did they do there, whip all the riders to work? She wouldn't be surprised. But she would make it her goal to never go near those people again. Once again tearing her gaze away from him, she paused as she spotted a fresher-looking scar. She frowned. Where was that from? He had to have gotten in while at Selenitas-- or, rather, a recent Selenitas. Her frown deepened. "Where'd you get that scar on your arm from?" she asked, pointing. However, she was quickly distracted by his question-- and by his dropping of his towel. Caught unawares, she jumped a little. She backed away a little further. Those sudden actions just made her more and more nervous. But at least he was pulling pants on. Shard it, she wished he wouldn't keep surprising her like that.

"Dadadada!" Shei complained, beating her little arms up and down. Shmee allowed a smile for the babes antics. However, Shei chose that moment to reach at Shmee's smile, batting at her mother's lips.

Looking over the babe, she looked back at the man grimly. He was being obnoxious. "Now that we have maturely exchanged greetings," she said plowing right through and ignoring his comments. "I came so we could hopefully make things well with us. Also, I noticed that your wardrobe is absolutely hideous, and I am helping to remedy that in the process." Lifting up the shirt in her free hand, she shot him an irritated look. "Besides, I think you could use it right now," she told him, jerking her chin toward his shirtless body. "I made it while I was at the Hold," she told him with a shrug. Well, she had made a tunic for everyone and their mothers at the Hold, it seemed.

Shei, in the meantime, had heard her name, and she looked up excitedly. She smiled brightly at him as she continued to bat Shmee's lips. The babe babbled to herself as Shmee then proceeded to bounce her. She lost her aim at Shmee's mouth, but the bouncing was a good distraction. Shmee was tempted to throw the shirt to Ka'rys, but she changed her mind. With his attitude, he'd probably let it drop to the floor and let it get dirty before he'd even worn it. And she felt that the green material was too pretty to let that happen. Pity she went off and wasted it on Ka'rys.

Hello, Ciceroth,[/color] Aslath called pleasantly from her weyrledge. Her desire for revenge on Salenth had evaporated, as had her desire to use Ciceroth in that way. Nevertheless, Ciceroth was a very good bronze, and could be considered a very good friend, even if she didn't cuddle him. Mine brought Yours a present. She thinks he will throw it on the ground,[/color] she told him cheerfully.

[glamourie]

Startled by Aslath speaking, Ciceroth jumped, his entire body shuddering. To balance himself again he flapped his wings, then shook his head, looking around frantically in surprise before it occurred to him that Aslath was... probably not in his weyr anywhere. His eyes whirled, first in confusion, then in recognition, before he crooned across the canyon to her. He'd been sound asleep and literally startled awake by her words, but that was okay - he probably shouldn't have been sleeping in the middle of the day anyway. RysHis was always calling him lazy. Hello, Aslath. Why would Rysmine drop a gift Yours gave him? Unless it is food, I don't see why he would do that. He thinks she would poison him, though, so if it is food he would probably not eat it, the bronze explained, a note of confusion in his 'voice'; he didn't see why RysHis would do anything so inconsiderate. He was prone to being sarcastic, yes, but he did not receive very many gifts, and often appreciated them when he did. Then again, Aslath's couldn't know that; she didn't talk to RysHis very often. They seemed content to ignore one another. Ciceroth was very convinced they were backwards human-beings and nothing between them couldn't be solved by a good sunning together. That was how he solved problems, at least.

"I was --"

Ka'rys's explanation was cut off in the middle by Ciceroth jumping and he turned to look across the weyr at the bronze, a slender eyebrow raising. Talk about entertaining. Had he just been startled awake? From the foggy feeling of confusion he got from Ciceroth, he was guessing he had. Ridiculous beast. "That's what you get for sleeping in the middle of the day!" Ka'rys called across the weyr, scolding. His words earned a loud snort that was very clearly dismissive; since when did Ciceroth ever listen to Ka'rys? Rolling his eyes, the bronzerider turned back to Shmee, his explanation blocked from the forefront of his mind. He hoped that she would be just as distracted by Ciceroth's awkward behavior as he was. Explaining how he'd attained that injury was not something he was eager to do. It was embarrassing, but not for the most obvious reasons. He was more embarrassed that he'd attacked a child (and Mutasim qualified as a child, from the outburst of insults he'd offered; in the light of day when he was awake and not confused he could recognize that) than anything else. Losing was only half as embarrassing as that, and he doubted Shmee would approve at all. Even he didn't.

It was very hard not to throw his shirt right at Shmee's head as she spoke. No, he wasn't being very mature to her, but what did she expect? They weren't friends. They weren't even associates really. They tolerated one another because they had to and Shmee made it very clear she thought little of him. Was he suddenly supposed to change his opinion of her, based on the fact that she showed up in his weyr unannounced? The last two people who did that got kissed and slashed, respectively. Since he wasn't attracted to Shmee, the latter was a more likely option. Alas, no shirts would be thrown. The Weyrwoman was carrying around her baby and Ka'rys would restrain his temper if only out of respect for little Shei, who had more of his attention than her mother. She was very cute. And... Shmee was... holding up what appeared to be a dark green shirt. His gaze lingered on it for a moment, confusion passing through him. Why would she bother? She didn't like him. No, Shmee made it painfully clear she hated him. He was confused, and he didn't even bother to try to hide it; she made no sense. Was it too much to ask for a little consistency?

Well, he was going to wear the silvery-gray one, but... if she was giving him a new shirt, he supposed it wouldn't hurt to indulge her. A little. Ka'rys shook his head then slipped across the weyr to take the shirt from Shmee's hand before pulling it on over his head. It fell a little more loose around him than most shirts would, but compared to his normal ones, it fit surprisingly well. His expression resembled a deer in headlights as he picked at the fabric before stepping away from Shmee, as if he half-expected to be slapped. He didn't know how to respond to kindness from her and it made him highly uncomfortable.

"Thank you." That seemed reasonable enough - right? "It's nice." Not his favorite color, but he had a feeling Shmee would hit him if he mentioned that, and he didn't want to sound ungrateful. It was nice. Just not to his preferences, really.

Ophelie, on the other hand, loved it, as evidenced by the way the green flitter chirruped and flew from the shelf she was sitting on to land right on her bonded's shoulder. Nudging his jaw, she wriggled against the green shirt, then fluted again, clearly pleased. It was the same color as she was! (Okay, not technically -- Ophelie's hide had blue hues to it that gave the illusion of looking like some sort of sea-flower as opposed to the dark forest green that the shirt was, but she was intelligent enough to recognize and appreciate the similarities.) Happily, the green firelizard chirped to Shmee, clearly the firelizard equivalent of Thank you! - Hers had always taught her manners.

The firelizard's presence was a good reminder to him and Ka'rys turned to step toward the fireplace. "That reminds me -- Ciceroth mentioned that Aslath told him you were interested in a firelizard." He grabbed the jar from on top of the mantle over the fireplace; it was a dark-colored jar, filled with sand taken from the Hatching Sands. He held the jar out toward Shmee, as much for her to look as to hold, if she thought she could carry both it and Shei at once. "Ophelie decided it was a very good idea to clutch right on my ankles," he explained boldly, with an active effort to keep the embarrassment from his voice, "and then forget, by the time I woke up, that the clutch was hers. Four little eggs at my ankles and she chattered and chirped -- Ciss informed me that she was very impressed I managed to clutch. I've given the other three eggs out, and I don't really know if this one will hatch at all, but I thought since Aslath said you wanted one, you might appreciate it. I can find someone else to give it to if you'd prefer one from a queen's clutch, though. The eggs are tiny; if any actually hatch, they probably won't produce anything big..."

[Administrator]

Aslath was amused. Had Ciceroth been sleeping? Well, she probably shouldn't have woken him up, but it was the day already, and he should be up. This eased her conscience greatly. She crooned a greeting back to him. She was in an oddly good mood today. Her mood had actually been improving greatly since speaking with Salenth. Stretching out her golden limbs on the weyrledge, she flicked her tail lazily. I do not know why she thinks he would drop it, either,[/color] she replied, rumbling happily with dragon-laughter. No, no, she would not poison him. And I do not think that he would eat the shirt even if she did put poison in it. I have not yet seen a human eat a shirt before.[/color] What a ridiculous notion! But Mine is thinking negatively of things. I do not think it is Yours' fault that she thinks that way,[/color] she added kindly.

Onto more happier things... So were you being lazy today?[/color] she asked teasingly, looking across at him with contented blue-green eyes.

Shmee, unlike her dragon, was far from content. Watching stonily as Ka'rys hollered at Ciceroth, she looked back over toward the ledge with brief curiosity. She heard Aslath having a conversation with Ciceroth, but, like she usually did, she put it in the back of her mind. If Shmee listened to every conversation that Aslath ever had, she would never have free time again. So she met Ka'rys' eyes squarely as he looked back in her direction. Hand it over and walk out, her mind instructed. But courtesy, unfortunately, suggested otherwise. Besides-- didn't she mean to look more mature than him right now? She took a slow breath.

She watched him carefully as he came and took the shirt from her. Bouncing Shei dully, she simply nodded at his thanks. It was all obligation that he say that. Hell, everything she was doing was out of obligation, not sincerity. The only thing that she had done that was almost sincere was actually making him the shirt. She had no reason to, but he had been... tolerable when they had met about the wings. So she had wanted to give him something, particularly since she was making everyone else a shirt. She raised an eyebrow as she watched him put it on. What was that look for? Well, if he didn't like it, he could throw it away when she wasn't looking, she thought bitterly. After all, it wasn't like she'd be hurt or anything...

Of course you would be,[/color] Aslath interrupted conversationally. You've been sensitive lately, so if he threw it away, you probably /would/ be hurt.[/color] Now it was Shmee's turn to make the deer-in-headlights look, only it was back towards the direction of Aslath's weyrledge.

Can't you see I'm talking right now? she finally asked. Aslath merely rumbled in amusement. She was right, after all.

If Aslath had been watching, she would have been pleased to see further evidence of her claim form in the shape of a smile on Shmee's face as she watched Ophelie happily wriggle into the shirt. Someone appreciated it, even if it wasn't who she intended. "Hello," she said quietly to the green. Now Ophelie was a true sweetheart. Turning Shei so that the babe could face the green, her tired smile grew even more. Shei squealed happily at seeing the flitter, and her little blue eyes glowed happily. "Do you remember Ophelie, Shei?" she asked her lovingly. Shei gurgled, wriggling about in her mother's arms. Letting Shei be entranced by the view, Shmee looked back over to Ka'rys.

She frowned a little at his movements, but that was replaced by a look of pure shock as she realized what must be inside the jar. Staring at in, she only managed a weak smile at his little story. "I..." she said, unsure. The old desire for a flitter had come back to haunt her at this instant, and Aslath urged her mentally to take it. Of course, there were the worries-- what if it wasn't good with babes? What if it was a dud?

You'll never know until you try,[/color] Aslath's sly voice said.

"Uh... Are you sure?" she asked anxiously, looking at the jar, with desire unable to be hidden from her eyes. Shei, still distracted by Ophelie, reached out for the green. To Shmee, she wouldn't mind a little flitter. It was actually the lower colors that she had better experiences with. Still... "Are... Are you sure I wouldn't have to pay for it?" she asked weakly.

[glamourie]

Ciceroth circled on his ledge several times, literally going in a circle more than once before he finally flopped down in nearly the exact same position as he'd been in before he woke up. He clamped his wings to his sides and half-rolled over, so he was practically laying on his head. It was his favorite sleeping position. Rysmine has that effect on people, Ciceroth conceded, and he does not really... well... he... Let us just say that I do not believe he knows how to react to the idea of Yours coming to visit us as he is of the opinion she would sooner throw herself in the river than spend any amount of time with him. It confuses him that she is here. The only one who comes to our weyr is Hepaticath's. She came to visit from time to time. RysHis was very insistent that he not tell Hepaticath about that, but he had never said anything about telling Aslath, and Ciceroth did not see the harm. Besides, it wasn't as if they'd done anything wrong. Not in his opinion, at least.

Snuggling closer to himself, the bronze snorted quietly, before answering her question with a casual glance toward the inside of the weyr. Rysmine is boring during the day; he runs around panicking about defense layouts and/or complaining about egg-heavy greenriders. So, while he is stressing himself out, I sleep. He calls me very lazy, but I think I am practical. What better way to avoid having to listen to him complain?

Oblivious to his dragon's conversation, Ka'rys watched Shmee in interest. Ophelie fluted to Shei and Shmee both, clearly affectionate as she squirmed up onto Ka'rys's shoulder. Her tail snaked around his throat possessively, though she did lean down slightly to writhe against the shirt some more. It was so comfortable! From the rapid whirl of her eyes, it was clear Ophelie was enraptured. Enough, in fact, that she missed that Shei was reaching out to her. She probably would have flown over to the little girl if she'd noticed, but the firelizard's gaze was entirely on the shirt. So pretty, so pretty! Hers really was a pretty green. He'd even clutched. Chirp, chirp. She was positively thrilled.

Her surprise actually amused him and Ka'rys glanced at the jar before holding it out more firmly. "Pay? People actually pay for these things?" he inquired, with no small amount of amusement. "They seem to hatch by the caravan-load. No - no. No paying, what would I do with the marks anyway? Buy Ciceroth more expensive gear? He's spoiled enough as it is." He shook his head, then glanced down at the jar. "I don't particularly want another firelizard, the one I have is bad enough, and if it hatches I'll just feel guilty if I don't feed it; therefore, it's better if I find someone who could appreciate it. I doubt Ophelie would be grateful at having to share me anyway. So yes, I'm sure. I don't need marks. I just let mine rot anyway. I don't particularly want anything or have anything I'm eager to spend them on." What do you buy for someone who has everything they want? "Besides, it's just a green --"

His words were cut off as he felt Ophelie vibrating against his neck, humming quietly. Blinking, he glanced at her, then back at the jar before holding it out more insistently. Bad, bad. He did not want another firelizard. He honestly did not. "Take it, please? She's humming, I don't want it to hatch while I'm holding the jar." He didn't even want to be in the same room as the thing, but there was little he could do to avoid that, if the sudden sound of cracking was anything to judge by. "I could hold Shei a moment, if you'd like, or you can set her down on one of the couches or something - but take the egg before I pitch it, I don't want it hatching while I'm holding it, and evidently it is hatching, from the way she's humming." He'd been taking care of the egg since it was laid; honestly, Ka'rys would've been hurt if at least one of them didn't hatch. Poor Savitri, Ch'ero and Rawign. He'd dumped the other eggs on them. Savitri and Rawign would probably kill him. Not that he much cared.

You worry too much, Ciceroth informed Ka'rys neatly. Another little cousin wouldn't be so bad. Then I could teach both of them to scratch my eye ridges at the same time.

[Administrator]

Aslath rumbled with laughter. Believe me, he does not want to make her throw herself in the river. I wouldn't let her throw herself in the river. Besides, she doesn't dislike him as much as she used to. I think the main reason she ever did was because he Flew her and it hurt because she had clutched recently, and also because she missed Salenth's. But after everything that's happened, she wants to be at peace with everyone.[/color] Which would be easier for the Weyrleading duo, in her opinion. It was rough for the Weyr to have a Weyrwoman and Weyrleader who couldn't stand to be in each others' presences. But now, Aslath was positive, that this would fix. That would be quite a relief. Everyone would be able to be happy-- or, at least, somewhat satisfied. At least where Shmee and Ka'rys were concerned. Oh, wouldn't it be grand if they could actually tolerate each other more often and maybe eventually visit each other randomly like this sometimes? Perhaps she was too hopeful, but she liked playing the optimist.

Ohhh, Hepaticath's, eh? This ensnared her interest quite effectively, and she regarded him curiously. Hepaticath's?[/color] she asked, delighted. The young gold was too young to pose a threat to taking her mate (on an instinctual level, she'd be displeased if the bronze that had mated with her last took a different gold so soon), but it wasn't Hepaticath herself; he had said Hepaticath's, which surely meant her rider! This sounded very interesting. What does she visit him for?[/color] she asked innocently.

But then there was more to discuss! That makes sense,[/color] she replied sympathetically to how he described Ka'rys. I think Yours and Mine do need to visit together more. They lead together, and they could share these responsibilities,[/color] she told him sagely. Mine is very seriously considering having daily /between/-trips for the greenriders. Many of them are egg-heavy, and it annoys her, too. They could complain about it together.[/color] She snorted. That way, they could be each other's means of release, and we could sleep. Now /that/ is a good idea.[/color] She was quite pleased with how that sounded, she thought proudly. She truly was a smart dragon at times.

Shmee ground her teeth thoughtfully. Clutches, particularly green clutches, truly weren't very rare. And he didn't seem to be much of a spender, nor did he want a flitter... She was torn. Now that it was within her grasp, Shmee found herself aching for the little unborn (and potentially never would be born) flitter. Thoughts of Cezine's flitters and Ka'rys' flitter raced through her mind. They were all so sweet, and so gentle around Shei, so she knew that whatever hatched could very possibly be. And didn't flitters want to please their bonded? So either way, a flitter would have to be good with Shei because that's how Shmee would want it to be. And another little creature to love-- and that would give her love in return-- made that ache pulse in her chest. But she couldn't accept something so freely, could she?

Yet her mind was made up for her. She didn't understand what it meant, at first, when Ophelie's little green throat began to vibrate. Only with a little bop in her mind from Aslath did it dawn on her that yes, flitters also hum when eggs hatch. Her blue eyes went wide. "I..." she began, but she paused. It was now or never.

"All right," she said, her voice taking on a slightly shrill tone. She bounced Shei lightly and nervously as she looked at the jar. The babe gurgled merrily, obviously liking the sound of Ophelie's humming. "You... You can hold Shei," she said, a slight hesitancy in her voice. Ka'rys was clearly infatuated with the babe, and he was being extraordinarily nice to her already in giving her a flitter egg, so what else would he have had to do to gain her trust with little Shei. Anxiously, Shmee held out the red-haired infant to him. Immediately, the babe's blue eyes lit up, and a little smile lit her plump face.

"Do... Do you have anything I can feed the flitter?" she asked, looking around. She hadn't brought anything herself...

[glamourie]

A slight hint of hurt that Ka'rys refused to acknowledge flared in the back of his mind from the obvious reluctance Shmee had to him holding Shei. Did she think that he would ever hurt her? He wasn't capable of hurting a child. Not then and not ever. It took a special breed of monster to allow themselves to cause any child deliberate harm, be it emotional or physical, and Ka'rys did not fall under that category. Many negative terms applied to him and monster may well have been one of them, but not that kind. Not that kind of monster. Still, he supposed he couldn't fault her for being protective, particularly when she didn't know him well, and she did relent in the end, holding the child out for him to take. He carefully took Shei and handed the jar off to Shmee carefully, then bounced her, his gaze lingering happily on the child. She really was cute... and seemed to take after her father more than her mother in some respects. Which was definitely good at times.

"Hiii," he said quietly to Shei, then blinked and looked up at Shmee again before nodding toward one of the bags on the floor. His attention shift had Ophelie chirruping to the babe in obvious recognition. She liked the little one, and was contentedly humming as well as watching her. Ka'rys was oblivious, focusing more on the child's mother for the moment, though it was obvious from the care he took in holding her that he had some experience with babies. "There should be some salt-cured fish in there. Not much; I was feeding Ophelie earlier. I tend to steer away from the red meats. But enough for a hatchling until you can get him or her fed properly, I think. Ophelie likes it well enough, so I don't see why a hatchling wouldn't."

In the jar, the little egg, which was a metallic blue in sheen, vibrated and twitched, little spindling cracks forming all over it, visible even despite the sand. Even for a firelizard egg, it was positively tiny, too; there was no denying that it was a green's egg, just from the sheer size, but it was also blatantly well cared-for. It was Ophelie's egg, so of course Ka'rys had taken care of it. He could be inconsiderate a lot, but he did love that firelizard - every bit as much as he did Ciceroth.

On the weyrledge, Ciceroth crooned curiously in Aslath's general direction, his eyes swirling a shade of yellow-green. But that is not fair to him. Aslath's bonded's early treatment of His had upset Ka'rys a great deal and Ciceroth remembered how flustered he'd been. Despite repeated attempts at comfort, Ka'rys was insistent on being miserable. He'd explained it once as he felt like he'd brutalized her - and hadn't meant to. Why it mattered was beyond his comprehension. RysMine was very unhappy, you know; he blamed himself continually for hurting her. He said that he thought it was because of the hatchling but it still upset and confused him. He does not care if she likes him, but I don't think he ever meant to hurt her, and the fact that she made a fuss over him doing so when it was beyond his control is very unfair. He paused, then added, carefully, He is afraid to touch her now - at all. Please don't tell her that. He would be very angry with me for telling you; he does not want anyone to know that.

She almost certainly would not like that comment. Ciceroth would not have, if someone criticized Ka'rys to him... although, at times, he recognized his rider's flaws. That was a trait not many dragons seemed to possess. At least, in his experience, they all seemed to believe their riders infallible. Ciceroth adored RysHis despite his weaknesses. Where Aslath's was concerned, however, he did not think RysHis was wrong. The woman had upset him severely and it took a lot to get under RysHis's skin that way. Whether Aslath really cared or not was beyond him, though.

As for visiting more... Rysmine avoids her because she is often agitated with him, the bronze admitted. I don't think he would object to her visiting more if she does not pick at him. He does try not to pick at her, but... He is difficult. Broken, mine is. Means of release...? He doubted very seriously that RysHis would ever tell Aslath's anything of consequence. It took a lot to make him open up to anyone. Listening he did well, but talking was anything story. It was a problem he was having with Hepaticath's as well. Which reminded him that Aslath had asked after her, Rysmine and Hepaticath's are friends. He likes and fusses over her, but she scares him some, too. I think he would like her to be his mate sometime but he insists they can't because of Hepaticath. He paused. Then, I do not see why Hepaticath would care...

[Administrator]

Shei didn't seem to mind in the slightest as she was moved from her mother's arms into Ka'rys'. She smiled broadly up at him, her vivid blue eyes meeting his with a twinkle of happiness in them. However, this little bit of attention for him lasted only a moment before she looked up at Ophelie. She screeched with joyful baby-laughter as she reached up one of her pudgy hands to the green flitter. Ophelie seemed to be a good distraction from her mother, who took the jar as soon as she handed the babe off. Giving Ka'rys one last nervous look, she dropped to the bag that he had pointed to. She didn't like having many people holding Shei, aside from Laurie and S'rei, and in addition to the fact that Ka'rys didn't like her much either, it made her a little nervous to see him holding the babe. But from the way he interacted with her at their last meeting, she knew she was just being silly, and overreacting to things-- again. He was being kind to her now, and anyway, what would his dislike of her be bad for Shei? Shei wasn't her.

Forcing her anxiety to subside by mentally repeating those thoughts, she dug through the bag with one hand, while shakily holding the jar in the other one. She hoped it wouldn't crack open till she found the food and took it out of the jar. She didn't want to either lose the flitter or get it stuck in there or something. Grinding her teeth anxiously, she found the little mess of fish. "I'm sure it'll be fine," she babbled quickly. Meat was meat, wasn't it? Sitting down on the floor, she dropped the meat beside her and put the jar between her legs. With extreme gentleness, she took the cracking shell out of the jar. She didn't know if she was going about this the right way, but she didn't want the flitter to fly out of the jar and out of her reach too quickly. Looking up at Ka'rys, as if seeking assurance that she was doing this right, she curled the cracking egg against her stomach as she grabbed some of the fish from beside her, poised to shove it into the little thing's mouth as soon as it emerged.

The color of the egg was beautiful, she thought oddly. It fit, though. She loved the color blue. But by the size of the egg, it would probably hatch green. Which she didn't object to at all in the slightest, of course. Greens were such sweet little creatures. Ophelie was so perfect with Shei. And metallics bothered her, anyway. The only ones that she had come to know were Seresta's gold and bronze, and they had terrorized everyone in the candidate barracks back in her day. No, whatever came out of this egg would be perfect.

Aslath grunted at Ciceroth's words, her version of a sigh. I /know/ that she was not fair to him. She is not fair to people many times, and I apologize for her for that. When she is feeling badly, it is hard for her to think of others,[/color] she told him, trying to sound patient, but the patience in her tone sounded strained. She didn't like it when people talked about Hers like that, even if it was true. In fact, it being true only made her dislike it even more. Fortunately, the rest of his words finally sunk. She blinked. She did not know that he felt badly,[/color] she said sheepishly. Immediately, she relayed the message to Shmee-- during the pause before he asked her to not tell that to her. Immediately, her eyes tinged pink in embarrassment. But already, Shmee's mind nudged her own, trying to get Aslath to elaborate on the quick feeling that had been sent.

Never mind. He does not want me to tell you,[/color] she said uncomfortably.

No. All I got was something about Ka'rys, your Flight, and bad feelings. What were you saying?

There was a brief mind-wrestle between Shmee and Aslath, but Shmee won out in the end. Picking the answer out of Aslath's mind, she blinked, confused. He felt bad for hurting me?

Aslath felt guilt take over her rider again, and she looked at Ciceroth helplessly. I am sorry, I had started to tell her, but I stopped when you asked me to, and she got that from me,[/color] she told him grumpily. And now she is feeling bad. I am sorry if she says anything,[/color] she told him, flicking her tail. But even before she knew that, I do not think she would have picked at him so much. She has been seeing sense more since she came back from the Hold. I think that they can be better someday, even if they are broken.[/color]

Fortunately, talking of Hepaticath and Savitri made things lighter for her. It is good that he found someone he wants to mate,[/color] she told him, sounding a little cheerier. Mates always scare each other at times. What has she been doing to Yours?[/color] she asked curiously. Sometimes, scaring each other left very bad effects...

She merely rumbled cheerfully at his idea of the humans mating. When humans mate freely, they have many thoughts in their mind,[/color] she told him sagely. Thoughts of Flights and of mating... Hepaticath has not yet learned about those, and suddenly doing so would probably frighten her. Those thoughts are very strong,[/color] she told him, pleased that she understood this sort of thing well enough to explain it. Oh, how she loved to feel smart!

[glamourie]

The egg gave another violent shudder, and Ophelie chirruped - but her attention was quickly absorbed by Shei, and she turned to look down at the baby before fluting musically. Her tail snaked down to wind around Shei's wrist, and her eyes whirled vivid blues and greens, happy colors. She liked the baby almost as much as her pet did, and clearly the baby liked her. Pleased by this, Ophelie nudged Ka'rys's chin, clearly encouraging, and he snorted to himself before casting the firelizard an accusing look. Naturally, the firelizard ignored it, instead humming happily and focusing all of her attention on Shei. She'd completely forgotten the hatching egg in her distraction. The little two-legged liked her! (Not that Ophelie had met many people who disliked her -- even Hers liked her, and she knew how much he loathed firelizards in general and salamandyrs as a rule. She was special!)

"Suck up," Ka'rys accused of the little firelizard, who neatly ignored him. His gaze turned down to Shei as he rocked her and a slender eyebrow raised playfully. "Little lady, you are going to spoil Ophelie and make her unbearable. Then what will I do, hmm?" Without waiting for a response, he turned his attention back to Shmee and watched her retrieve the fish. A curt nod was offered, meant to be encouraging. Really, he knew little about Impressing on purpose. Ophelie just... decided he was Hers. He hadn't gone to that hatching hoping to get a firelizard's attention.

Flinching slightly at Aslath's tone, Ciceroth crooned; it was meant to sound apologetic, but he was not all that sorry. It was only natural that his loyalties laid with Ka'rys, and anything that upset His had a tendency to bother Ciceroth. He tried to be reasonable and unbiased, which was hard when the person who meant everything to him was involved, but someone had to be fair and Ka'rys certainly wouldn't be. So, he tried to use reason when dealing with people. Yes, he understood what Aslath meant, in saying that Hers was not often very fair when upset. That made sense. RysHis also wasn't. What he didn't understand - and would not give voice to - was that he didn't think that being unfair merited mean treatment. More often than not, His simply hid away and/or avoided the people who upset him, rather than dealing with them. Aslath's was a classic example. He literally fled the sight of her when he didn't need to talk to her about Weyr business. Somehow, Ciceroth also thought that was unlikely to change.

RysHis was nothing if not stubborn, and he rarely changed his opinions. That was why when Aslath answered him again, Ciceroth flipped one wing over his face as though to hide behind it. Fortunately, it seemed as though Aslath's did not immediately launch into question regarding that, which was... highly fortunate. RysHis would have vehemently denied ever caring one little bit. Well, maybe not. He was holding a hatchling. He tended to be more reasonable when presented when hatchlings (which was why Ciceroth felt they needed to attach one to him at all times).

Oblivious (fortunately) to his dragon's feelings, Ka'rys rocked Shei and glanced at the egg in Shmee's hands. She looked... nervous. Was it because of the firelizard or the baby? A slight frown played over his face, and against his better judgment, he spoke to her, voice barely audible, "You don't need to be so paranoid, you know. It's not like I would ever do anything to hurt Shei." To add to that explanation and, more meant as a peace offering, he tacked on, "I have a daughter of my own."

That made Shmee the second person to find out at Selenitas. Lauranna knew he had a child, too. He'd never really discussed Kalerary before, but it seemed to him that if he was ever going to make Shmee feel comfortable with him around Shei, the least he could do was offer her an olive branch. He recognized that her letting him hold the baby at all was one. Logically, he also knew that his words would not soothe all of her anxiety. But... maybe a little. Maybe a little. He could remember how it was when Kalerary was a baby; he hadn't wanted anyone to look at her let alone hold her. Could he really fault Shmee for not trusting him? Not fairly, though the slight hurt that she seemed to believe he could ever hurt a child, no matter who's it was, was there. He wasn't capable of such .. monstrosities. That was one of the few things over the line even for someone with as cold a sense of practicality as he had. Children were special, and meant to stay out of things.

She asks questions, was the simple reply Ciceroth offered, trying to avoid the awkwardness that came with discussing RysHis's feelings regarding Aslath's. If they continued on that line of topic it would end in a disagreement; he did not think RysHis was wrong. He doesn't do well with people asking after his feelings, his motivations... his past. Sometimes things are better if they're left alone. She asks, and it scares him because he feels like he should answer. And he doesn't understand how he feels about her. She matters. He's not used to people mattering. That was... something of an understatement. Ka'rys really did not care much about people as a rule. Savitri was special. Special enough, in fact, that Ciceroth remembered her name. There were no other humans, other than RysHis, that he bothered with in that regard.

Aslath's explanation made him rumble curiously, but he did not inquire. Truthfully, he still didn't see what the problem was. So Hepaticath hadn't experienced that yet. Of course not; she was young. They could explain it, couldn't they? She was intelligent enough. (Ciceroth did not remember being a weyrling and thus how hard it was to understand the first time that RysHis was intimate with someone; he could not, therefore, fathom what the problem was.) His attitude was that if it confused Hepaticath at all couldn't they simply ease into it? Humans had so many stages of mating as it was. Or maybe RysHis was just broken in that regard too. Strangely, he didn't mind that idea that much. I don't think Rysmine would like that I told you about his feelings for Hepaticath's. He hasn't even told her. I've told him to and he scoffs.

[Administrator]

Shei seemed to like being spoken to, and she giggled happily. "Buhbuhbuh!" she babbled happily, looking back at Ka'rys gleefully. She did not like, however, when he was looking back at Shmee again. "Buh!" she protested, reaching her little hand to his chin, trying to push it back to her. Well, at least there was always Ophelie to harass. Not moving her hand from Ka'rys' chin, she looked back over to the green. Grunting irritably, she released the Weyrleader and used her hand to try and beat Ophelie's tail. Taking her irritation out on the flitter was a fine idea. With a daring glance back at Ka'rys' face, she blatantly continued with the hitting. Shmee would have probably told her off for it, but the woman was too focused on the hatching egg. It was almost as if she spared a glance at anything else, she would miss the opportunity to Impress, and that was something she didn't want to do.

Cradling the egg against her, she did chance another look back up at him as he spoke. She frowned in surprise. "I'm not being paranoid..." she began to protest, but his words overtook her own. She flushed. His words came as a surprise-- at least, the last part. "You have a daughter?" she asked, marveled. Was he lying? Somehow, she doubted it. Ka'rys didn't seem the type to lie about this sort of thing. So... Ka'rys had a child of his own. He didn't really seem much of a parental type, even though he did seem to have a weakness for children. And from the way he was holding Shei, he wasn't inexperienced. But who was this daughter? How old was she, what was her name, where was she now? She regarded Ka'rys slowly, the puzzlement apparent in her eyes. "Who... who is she?" she finally asked.

Looking back down at the egg anxiously, she pressed it closer against herself. "I... I didn't think that you'd hurt her, though," she added, just as softly as he had. "I'm just... really protective of her, that's all." Shei was her last lifeline, and she was extra careful with that little bundle of innocent joy. Said bundle stopped trying to beat on Ophelie for a moment, and instead targeted her anger back at the source: Ka'rys. "Buhhh," she grumbled, before butting her little red head against him and sinking her teeth into his shirt.

"Shei, don't bite," Shmee said sharply, wrapping her hands around the egg and looking back up at Ka'rys and Shei. She ground her teeth. He had felt bad about hurting her in Aslath's Flight, hadn't he? Then... shards. She paled. She had treated him miserably, yet he was still kind enough to give her a flitter egg. Just what was wrong with her!?

Aslath merely shrugged off the croon. It wouldn't appease her, but at least Ciceroth had made an effort. Ah,[/color] she replied to his thoughts on Savitri. Well, if asking about his feelings and past makes him scared, maybe it is something that /needs/ to be talked about. He should open himself up to Hepaticath's, and then he will be peaceful.[/color] Now /there/ was something that could make Ciceroth's feel better. It always helps to talk to someone if there is bad feelings. Mine did that, and she does not cry at every little thing now. Advice, advice. It was what queens lived for... well, depending on who it was, anyway. If she is friends enough with him that she matters, then she is a good person he could do that with.[/color]

The gold then suddenly yawned. The sun was making her sleepy. Perhaps napping in the day wasn't such a bad thing. But good thing he had said that last bit to her! Aslath was such a babble-mouth today. I will keep that much a secret,[/color] she told him with amusement. Mine is very against having riders with young dragons Flying each other. But if he does, don't let Mine catch him.[/color] She rumbled, flicking her tail. I think it would be nice for him to tell that to Hepaticath's, though,[/color] she added. It always makes the female think a little harder. Or, rather, Salenth's doesn't like saying it, but she can tell-- or could tell-- from the way he acted with her that he did. Does he do anything like that? I think he should. Hepaticath's would like him more for it.[/color] Or, at least, so she thought.

[glamourie]

Shmee's answer (and questions) did not go unnoticed, but Ka'rys did not respond immediately. He was distracted, as Shei had most effectively stolen his attention back to her by chewing on his shirt. Even though he knew the behavior was traditionally classified as 'poor' and thus should have been scolded, he couldn't fault her for it. First of all, Shmee was her mother and he was nothing to the child; he would not overstep the boundaries that were set by trying to tell her not to do that. Second, it was cute. Maybe that was him being completely whipped but he did not envy Shmee at all. Trying to tell a child they were behaving badly when said bad behavior was cute was one of the hardest parts of parenting. He was glad that he didn't have that role. It meant he never became the villain. Parents always did, whether they meant to or not, and no matter how old the child was. They never liked being scolded, and would always vilify the one doing the scolding. There was something decidedly nice about not being in that role, even if he did miss Kalerary something fierce every time he laid eyes on a child.

Bouncing her carefully, Ka'rys looked down at Shei and squinted before smiling. She had his full attention, see? He made a quiet cooing noise to emphasize that, as Ophelie, startled, flittered away from the little child's grasp. She was puzzled by having her tail smacked at. Oh, it didn't hurt, but it confused her; what had she done wrong? Ka'rys ignored the firelizard, though, instead humming quietly as he addressed Shei, "Apologies, little lady. Didn't mean to ignore you. Does the shirt taste good? It looks like some kind of vegetable. Are you the kind of baby who likes vegetables? That's a rare breed, that is. You should tell you mommy, say, 'Mommy, you should thank me.'" He nodded seriously for emphasis, even though he was quite certain the baby hadn't the foggiest clue what he was saying. In his experience, children just liked the sound of a grown-up's voice though, particularly when addressed to them.

Ka'rys was still facing Shei and gingerly bouncing her, though he decided to respond to Shmee after her initial statement to the baby. "You've never met her, Weyrwoman; she's still at Fort with her mother." He flicked a glance toward Shmee, then turned back to the infant. His next words were sad - but, he figured the least he could do was offer an explanation, at the least a touch of an elaboration. "Last time I saw her, she was about Miguel's size. She's six turns old now..."

He doesn't do that, though. Rysmine doesn't like talking about himself at all. I can't remember him ever doing. He doesn't mind others talking about themselves to him, or their problems, their feelings, but he really resents it when his are asked after. It makes him very uncomfortable. Not just with Hepaticath's, either. That's why he wouldn't like me telling you. He doesn't respond well to people questioning how he feels. Ciceroth flipped his tail slightly and snorted. RysHis didn't like talking about anything personal, and it was with everyone, even him. Ciceroth had simply learned to pluck the things out of Ka'rys's mind that he needed to know. While doubtlessly an invasive manner of dealing with him, sometimes it was necessary, particularly since RysHis would not talk about his feelings. He didn't find it therapeutic, he found it confusing and hurtful. I think... Rysmine and Yours are inherently different in this regard. He is very proud, and feelings are strange. Sentimental? No... But he does not like discussing them. I do not think he is that odd. Most males didn't like discussing feelings. Did they?

Looking thoughtful, Ciceroth moved across the weyrledge and crooned in Aslath's general direction before flopping down. No, he wasn't going to move to her ledge, but being closer made conversation more personal, didn't it? At least, RysHis seemed to think it did. Hmm.

"Her name is Kalerary," Ka'rys added weakly as he bounced Shei again. Why was Shmee blanching so...? "Only you and Lauranna know that now. I'll thank you not to advertise that fact either. It's not personal, but... I don't like people talking about me or my past, my history, my life." He was a private person. Was that so strange? And why did Ciceroth feel so puzzled? He cast a glance at Ciceroth, then whispered to Shei as he pointed with one finger, carefully. "See that big shiny? That's Ciceroth. Has your mother introduced you to Aslath? And Salenth? -- Miguel calls him Ciss." So did he for that matter, but he didn't tack that on. Not necessary. Shei surely knew who Miguel was, too, seeing as they'd met more than once. Of that Ka'rys was sure. "Ciss and Rys. Isn't that cute?"

At that exact moment, the egg in Shmee's hands chose to shatter, spilling forth a dark blue firelizard that rolled out of the egg and into Shmee's palms. He was tiny, even for a blue hatchling, and barely moved at first. The shock of hatching out of the egg was clearly bothersome to him. However, after a moment, he carefully climbed onto his legs and turned about before looking up at Shmee with rapidly whirling eyes that went a dazzling myriad of color. Rainbow. There was no sound, though - he was quite a quiet little fellow.

I don't think he plans to do anything any time soon, Ciceroth explained. He is very nervous about upsetting Hepaticath's, and Rysmine is very odd about mates. He does not pick his mates lightly. They have to be special. Hepaticath's is special but she still scares him a little. I think... he is afraid he will chase her off if he is not careful. So he moves slowly. He will not tell Yours, though. With a slight pause and a sheepish whirl in his eyes, Ciceroth added, I am surprised he even mentioned his hatchling to her. Rysmine is very weary of yours. She doesn't scare him but he doesn't ... know how to react to her, really...

---

Species: Firelizard
Color: Blue
Gender: Male
Age: Hatchling

Description: Absolutely tiny is this firelizard, small enough to be mistaken for a green in terms of size. Several large greens will even dwarf him. His body is long and spindly, and his wings are startlingly thin, though long enough that they will grand ridiculously fast turns. Gliding is definitely difficult for this firelizard, so he prefers to sit and perch. His tail is very long and whippy, almost the length of his entire body, giving him a more serpentine appearance than most firelizards possess, and he has slightly large eyes that are expressive even for a firelizard. As far as coloring goes, his hide is a backwash of blue so dark as to resemble the night sky. Over his ridges and along the edges of his wings are slightly lighter blue shades that add emphasis and depth to his appearance. Peculiarly, when light hits him, he has a nearly metallic blue sheen, a mingling of elegant sapphire and vivid aqua that resembles some kind of folded steel melted into hide. All of these traits together give this little blue an extraordinarily unique appearance that is not easily forgotten and often merits a second or third look, as though to make sure that he is real.

Personality: Taking after his dam, this little blue is extraordinarily quiet, rarely making a peep; when he does, it is quiet and musical, like every little sound is the first few notes or chords of a song. Even at his loudest, he is 'soft' spoken, and it is more often for this blue to bob his head or shake it to answer rather than make any noise. He says a lot with what he doesn't say; his eyes are highly expressive and show every emotion more effectively even than most other firelizards do. Given the small size of his wings, this firelizard much prefers to sit and will likely act as a permanent ornament to his humanpet, perching on shoulders, in hair or hands; he will rarely venture far, as physical touch is comforting to him. His small size will make it hard for him to participate in many flights, so for him to chase will be rare -- only the firelizards most deserving will merit his attention. He's actually more likely to chase salamandyr greens, although whether he catches them or not remains to be seen. Graced with the patience of a saint, this firelizard is extremely hard to make angry, and is an exceptional listener; though he may not be the most intelligent of blues, he's not unintelligent, either, and will follow the orders of his bonded heedlessly - right or wrong. Nothing pleases him more than to hear he's done something well and he takes excessive pride in making his bonded happy - at most any cost.

[Administrator]

Shei continued nibbling on Ka'rys' shirt, content that he was talking to her, even if she couldn't understand just what he was talking about. Already, the part she had been chewing on was saturated with her drool. She was quite an attention-seeker, wasn't she? Good thing Ka'rys was there to keep her occupied, or else she would probably pitch a shriek-fest. She was rarely separated from her mother, and even if she was, it was either with Lauranna or her father. If she had been ignored by the person who was holding her, she would let him know that it was not okay. She gurgled pleasantly, letting go of the shirt for a moment to smile joyfully at Ka'rys. Nobody could resist that charming little smile, could they? At least, people who didn't live with her were usually weak to it. Lucky for him, this smile would be easy to keep glued to her pudgy little face, just so long as he gave her full, undivided attention.

Shmee looked down at the egg, her mind beginning to wander. A daughter that he hadn't seen in turns? Why didn't he go to visit her? But she didn't want to drive a nail between them even more by questioning that. The way he was so good with Shei meant he had to feel remorse for living his own daughter, right? Surely he had a good reason for leaving her, didn't he? For some reason, the thought of a young girl without her father made her sad. Shei had almost been like that, hadn't she? A child was something that nobody could ever leave willingly. It would have been so much safer for poor little Kalerary to come South with her father rather than remain in the North... She ground her teeth uneasily, trying not to be too mad at Ka'rys. He had to have a reason.

She only nodded at his wish to not spread around the fact that he had a child. This, at least, was something that she could give him. Kalerary. How was she, without a father, in the North especially? She continued to look sadly down at her egg, clutching it protectively, not even realizing that Ka'rys was once again giving Shei his full attention.

Like always, little Shei had nothing to complain about. Enthralled, she looked out in the direction that the man was pointing. However, she seemed to be more interested in his finger than in the "big shiny". "Buhbuhbuh," she said satisfactorily, grabbing at his finger, and trying to pull it into her mouth so that she could suck on it. Another smile broke across her face, and she giggled. She liked this man a lot. Looking back in the direction of Ophelie curiously, she pointed to her happily, giggling again.

Oh.[/color] Aslath sounded a little put-out, but she didn't try to squeeze anything out of him. She didn't understand how it was better for Ka'rys to keep things bottled up. She knew that whenever Hers tried to do that, it made both of them sad all the time. Well,[/color] she finally said slowly, As long as it works for him and it doesn't hurt him, it is fine. Humans. They are so complicated. No two are exactly the same, and it gives me headaches.[/color] It was a grumble, even though she meant the words with fondness for Hers. It was true, though. How could two humans, Shmee and Ka'rys, be even more different? All dragons, though different, were fairly easy to understand.

At least the part of Ka'rys not wanting to upset his mate-- or potential mate-- was easy to understand. She liked how Ka'rys chose to move slowly. I will not mention anything about Hepaticath's to her,[/color] she told him warmly. Mine needs to teach her soon about Flights, though-- so she will need to have her first Flight soon, if she hasn't had it already. Maybe Yours can offer.[/color] It would work out splendidly...

She let out a sad groan. It seems like everyone is weary of her,[/color] she replied sady. She has noticed that people do not like to be with her much anymore, so she has noticed this fact. It is sad. I am glad that she has Brennath's and that wher's bonded to be friends with, though. But it would be better to have everyone like her as much again.[/color] She paused. Why doesn't Yours visit his hatchling?[/color] she asked, her curiosity getting the better of her. She had less restraint than Hers, it seemed.

Suddenly, the egg Shmee shattered. Her eyes widened as she peered closer to the tiny, delicate creature in her hands. Peeling away some of the shards, her eyes softened at the tiny thing. A beautiful dark-blue flitter. He didn't seem to be keen on moving much, but she knew that if she didn't feed him soon, he probably would try to fly away. Slowly, the little creature began to stand, looking at her almost expectantly with whirling rainbow eyes. Hastily reaching for the food she proffered some of the meat to him. He wasted no time in taking it from her. Sending her more pangs of hunger even as he daintily, but quickly, gobbled up his food, Shmee readied another piece. "You're so hungry, aren't you, sweetheart?" she murmured to him. Soundlessly, he grabbed at the next piece, delving into it ravenously, but as he did so, he sent little ripples of love toward Shmee in addition to the hunger. Shmee got yet another piece ready. "He's beautiful," she said softly to Ka'rys. "Thank you... so much." This little creature did love her, didn't he? As if answering her question, the waves of love grew from the small blue.

[glamourie]

Ka'rys raised an eyebrow as Shei seized his finger and the corners of his lips twitched in amusement; he made no effort, however, to prevent her from her claim. In fact, he was amused by her antics. Some people might have been worried about baby drool or slobber, but the days when such things could make him uncomfortable were long since gone. Having a child of his own to throw up on him periodically had numbed him to the awkwardness that most people found in being drooled all over. Strangely, though, he was amused to find that Shei was slightly more ornery than the last time he'd seen her. He added that up to the undeniable fact that she'd been extremely unhappy before - crying, whimpering and generally miserable because of her mother being gone. Confused, too. Hmm. He shook his head slowly, but kept his eyes on the little girl, namely to avoid having to watch Shmee. Of the two ladies present, she was by far the less intimidating; after all, babies were much easier to placate. Shmee was notoriously critical of everything he did, if he so much as breathed wrong she seemed irritated with him.

"Buhbuhbuh," he mimicked, grinning down at the little girl and rocking her. The Weyrwoman and her hatchling were all but unnoticed as he spun around, humming musically. Each movement was almost dance-like. It didn't occur to Ka'rys to find his behavior strange, either, or that Shmee might not be used to seeing him with his guard completely done. Around her he was notoriously hostile, but Shei got the side of him that so few got to see - the side of him that was almost human. "You should tell your mommy to get you a shiny from the Gather, Shei. Tell her, 'Mommy, you should buy me a pretty at the Gather.' See, I went to Blossom when Millieth fleeeeew --" As he said the word 'flew' he held Shei out in front of him to mimic the movements of flying before bringing her close again; safe and secure, no falling, "and I got to see some of the pretties that one of the jewelry makers there was making. They've got the prettiest charm bracelets, they do - little sculptures of varying metals, flowers for Blossom, little dragons for Selenitas, shells for Southern, I forgot to check for Hyphen, and Lighttower has a light tower. They're very cute, they are --"

Shmee was speaking. Blinking, he looked up at her and trailed off to listen without interruption. Her expression of gratitude made him cock his head and he looked down at Shei again. "Isn't that cute, your mama's thanking me for giving her a little noisemaker. Don't worry, she'll learn soon enough," he said playfully. Then he spoke to Shmee, "You're welcome, though it's really Ophelie you ought to be thanking, and you're more doing me a favor. I didn't particularly fancy the idea of keeping another flitter...." At the mention of her name, Ophelie twittered musically; as far as she knew, Hers had managed to clutch, wasn't that simply delightful? Oh, and the little one was so cute. She trilled to the blue hatchling, welcoming him into the world, and squirmed against her pet's neck. Then she fluted to the human hatchling. Hatchlings all around! Ka'rys shook his head slowly. "Shameless, she is..."

Ignoring his rider, Ciceroth flicked his tail and observed Aslath curiously. His gaze spun with obvious affection and he crooned down to her, grateful. He did not think His would like it if anyone knew about how much he liked Hepaticath's, although it was somewhat obvious. Anyone who saw them together noticed. Ciceroth was simply too nice to point it out to RysHis; he'd find out soon enough anyway. Though - he was also puzzled. Why was Aslath focused on who Flew Hepaticath's? Surely ... when Hepaticath's needed to Fly.. she would know who she wanted to Catch her? His eyes whirled, and he inquired, unable to help himself, Should we not let Hepaticath's decide who will Fly her when she Rises? It seemed like a valid enough question, though he added with amusement, I don't think Rysmine really understands Chasing. He doesn't do it very often...

His mood soured slightly at the mention of Brennath's, namely because RysHis was so irritable with her. He didn't voice that, though, instead explaining to the best of his ability how RysHis felt about the Weyrwoman, It is not personal exactly, Rysmine's agitation with Yours, and she should not let it hurt her. He is... very hard to be close to, and Yours is so very different from him. He paused, thoughtful, then added, He does not believe she likes him, either, and I do not think he minds. They are very different people. That was the nicest way Ciceroth could put it but the truth was that Ka'rys thought Shmee unintelligent; it wasn't personal, though, despite all appearances. The bronzerider was highly judgmental of people around him and highly cynical; he looked around and saw the lack of defense Selenitas had, saw the deaths of so many Weyrlings and riders alike, so many people hurt and suffering -- and nothing being done to prevent it; he blamed Shmee. It wasn't fair, Ciceroth knew, but it also wasn't entirely untrue. He was nice enough not to tell Aslath that, as if someone ever said such things about her rider, she would likely take offense. Not every dragon was as open to their rider's flaws as he was.

Startled by her question, Ciceroth's eyes whirled quickly and he bowed his head slightly. He didn't exactly know, though - so he leaned on Ka'rys in interest; it wasn't an exact question so much as feeling out. His mindmate was highly secretive. He didn't have to ask questions most of the time, which was good, since RysHis was prone to lying, even to him, when it came to feelings. Hmm. Because she is at That Place, and he is here. It is not easy to get into That Place unless you are one of them. They would question why a Selenitas bronzerider came back - and people at Selenitas would not understand why he would go to That Place without him explaining. It would endanger us, and the hatchling and Pyreath's. It would be... dangerous. So many questions. He is not one of them now, and that makes him the enemy. Selenitas is the enemy, and he is Weyrleader of an enemy Weyr. Going there might get him killed. Or the hatchling. It also might draw attention to Selenitas. He worries. It was the best explanation Ciceroth could offer, but he sounded very sad as he said it - and he was; it bothered him to think of His without his hatchling.

Ciceroth's probing spurred a hint of curiosity and Ka'rys glanced at Shmee before looking back down at Shei. "I've wondered," he began softly, figuring he was making a mistake, "for awhile - I was going to ask when we rearranged the wings, but I didn't want to push you when you were upset... but ... why do we not have defensive lessons of any kind? Even just optional...?"