All those fairy tales are full of shit (A'nd)

[Zephyr]

Darkness surrounded the pair as they walked through the weyrbowl. They were an unconventional couple, talk, awkward looking boy and powerfully muscled gold wher, hide shimmering even in the dark. Well, Kaius wasn’t really a ‘boy’ anymore. He was old enough to be called a man, but he didn’t seem to have grown into his overlong limbs. Not that it mattered much. He didn’t have anyone to impress. Not that he didn’t ever try to impress Sena. He did. It usually just ended up with him in a pile on the floor or something, because over the turns, not even the boy’s infamous clumsiness got any better. It was a good thing he had his wher, because otherwise he’d hurt himself far too often. The wher had gotten incredibly good at knowing when the awkward boy would fall and ‘catching’ him with her tail or back or whatever was handy.

They’d really grown into a great team.

Personally.

Professionally they could still use some work. Not Kaiusk. The wher was amazing with the other whers. Her siblings adored her from the most part, even if she was still trying to bring Sensk out of his shell after the departures of both Sydsk and Sesk, but she was trying, at least. Kaius was having problems with being in charge of…anything, let alone the entire night sentinel. Eikane had been preparing him for it, but neither of them knew that he’d have to put it to practical use quite so soon. The harper’s leave had affected him greatly, and now he was suddenly responsible for more than he’d ever been responsible for in his entire life.

He felt a thin tail coil around his leg and he nearly fell as Kaiusk tugged his limb gently. Calm my love. She projected into his mind, her pictures smooth as silk. She was definitely suave when she needed to be. You think far too much about these things. Worrying will not change what’s happened. You can only look to the future. You and I will make a great team. We’ll take care of all the whers under our watch. I promise you. He bit his lip, finding the wher’s cool golden hide with a hand and stroking it absently. “They don’t respect me, Ai. I know. I’m too young, to…awkward.” Kaiusk’s laugh was a series of pictures, as were all of her words, but Kaius never failed to picture her words as just that, words. It was just as similar to listening to a dragon’s mindvoice as anything could ever be. You just need to show them that you deserve respect. And you do, you’re worthy of it. In time, they’ll even be able to overlook your massive fail.

Because they both knew that wasn’t something he was going to be able to grow out of.

[Requiem]

He hadn't meant to stay so late. Even though he'd spent a couple turns here before the Summit decided to mix everything around, Inverness was now his home now and he was used to light alone being the best indicator of the passage of time. Here, deep underground in a honeycomb of caves, sunlight didn't reach the weyrbowl even during some parts of the day. The light of the glowing fungi was the only sure light, and that didn't change much from morning to night. He'd volunteered...as he often did...to bring a message from one Weyr to the other. If the messages weren't too delicate in nature they usually let him. This was when A'nd had the opportunity to see many of the dragonriders and wherhandlers he'd shared his candidacy with, and he looked forward to the opportunity. It also gave Xinatenth a change of pace, and Cootie the chance to explore a world she'd half-forgotten. Both of his mindmates enjoyed these semi-frequent visits.

Nevertheless, he always left before nightfall. It was dangerous to fly in the dark, and A'nd was still new enough at being a dragonrider to be especially careful with Xinatenth. They'd grown up in a world after the war ended and after the first Summit was held. The bluerider of course still remembered...he remembered many things about the war, and some of them he took pains to direct his thoughts away from. But his weyrlinghood was not conducted under that pall, and a boldness that he might have otherwise possessed was lacking. That, and Xinatenth was not the master of his wings. The light dragon was still learning how to use them. They were so large that he easily got caught up in airstreams, and he was still having difficulty flying just where he wanted to go. No need to add poor visibility to the mix.

There was nothing for it now. Xinatenth had already curled up on the bank of the ledge, using his wings as a sort of blanket. Their peacock eyes winked even from this distance, catching the light reflecting off the water. Even Cootie had a better sense of time than A'nd; she rarely spent much time on the young bluerider, preferring to be exploring and hunting (though usually not very far from him) but now she was curled up just inside the collar of his riding jacket, against his neck, tail curled partly around his neck in her sleep in an unconscious safeguard against slipping off.

The two minds so quiet inside his own invariably made A'nd sleepy. Xinatenth he'd had for not quite two turns, Cootie for over six. He could feel them sleeping, feel their presence, yet he had to admit that it really was strange not to feel them active inside his mind. He almost felt naked, even, without their direct influence. Something he wouldn't have thought possible when first the little green salamandyr claimed him as her own. Thus when Cootie, too, fell asleep, A'nd became aware of how late it was and was eager to sleep himself, even if it was half-sprawled on a dragon tail beside a lake out in the open. It wasn't really that cold in the Weyr, anyway; being beneath the earth made it considerably warmer down here than up above.

Yet as he made his way toward his mindmate, he spotted the pair. For a moment he didn't quite recognize the man, though something familiar struck him, and then he remembered. A smile touched his lips. It had been quite awhile...three turns about...but that didn't stop A'nd from veering to intercept Kaius. It was a testament to how much the Weyrs had become a part of him that he didn't hesitate at the massive adult queen wher, instead bumping up against Kaius in pure good-natured fashion. The teenager was still fun-loving, still active, but the turns had mellowed and gentled him since he first came to Selenitas as a rambunctious little teenager with a penchant for mischief. A rude little snot, even. Yet A'nd didn't even think about how the goldhandler might have remembered him. He was just happy to see another familiar face.

"Kaius." A brilliantly genuine smile lit up his face. "You've grown so tall I almost didn't recognize you." A'nd himself had put on nearly ten inches of height, though he still didn't quite reach six foot. This, too, he seemed to have forgotten. "And Kaiusk is as beautiful as ever. Here I thought I could steal everyone's valuables right out from under their noses, but with you two around I think I'd best keep my hands to myself," he added with a chuckle.