Tripped Up (K'sel)

[Ember]

Ah, a walk in the forest was nice. It wasn't everyday that she got the chance to. She felt a bit bad about leaving Nuoth behind but...at least she had her two pests with her. They put on lovely little aerial displays as they headed parallel to the weyr. Sort of parallel, anyways. Nephele sighed contentedly and was actually in a good enough mood to start singing. She was a horrible singer. She only dared to sing when she was not near other people..or glass objects. The song itself was a bit melancholic despite her mood. Cheerful songs weren't exactly her favourite.

It was a pleasant day and she was protected some from the overbearing heat of the sun in the south. The air was relatively still so the forest was quiet, save for her footsteps and the excited chittering of her flitters. Nephele was appropriately dressed for the weather. A cream coloured no-sleeve top that ended just above her navel paired with a pale green pair of relatively short shorts. One of her editted outfits. She liked to get simple clothes from gathers or the unwanted items of other women and make them into something to be envious of. Her simple outfit with a dark leather bangle and a pair of comfortable, short boots was very appropriate for the day.

The light brush of Nuoth's mind made the girl smile. The green was glad that she was in such a good mood. "Nothing could ruin today!" She told the brown flitters. She really should have knocked on wood then. Her thoughts drifted to the flights of Charming and Misfit. Salamandyrs hmm... Nephele really didn't know what to make of them. Misfit seemed happier though and Charming...she hadn't noticed a change with him. He still flirted with most things that moved. She should probably ask someone for more information about salamandyrs. She'd never been very good about asking for help or information though.

The girl was so lost in thought that she didn't notice a stray root in her path or the warning cheep from Misfit. Luck was almost on her side that day. While she cleared the root entirely, she misstepped once she was over it and pain accompanied her less than graceful fall. She ended up on the ground kneeling, both flitters fluttering around her worriedly. "I'm alright, I'm alright," she muttered. "Shards Nephele, how clumsy can you be?" The girl attempted to get up and winced. The moment of silence seemed to drag on for a couple of minutes before she picked up a stray rock and tossed it into the distance angrily. "You gotta be kidding me!"

[Lotty]

A laugh cracked out through the jungle - or rather a chuckle - a very pleased one that could never sound forced. Oh no, it was full and fruitful, the kind that sent waves of elation through the body. The figure up in the trees...yes he found Nephele's mishap to be quite funny...enough to rock back and forth from another round of laughter before dropping down off the branch and onto the trail. Deja vu? Most certainly. It always seemed that things had a way of coming full circle, and here we were again at the beginning and end. Funny meeting up like this; nearly the same way they had about a turn ago...the fact was not lost on K'sel at all as he approached the girl with his arms crossed and mouth twisted into a perfectly smug smile.

He leaned down in an imposing, really sort of condescending manner all the while shifting his hands to clasp again behind his back as he whispered, "Oh, but we're not kidding you...Nephy." He stood up straight again and basked in the moment. So rarely did he get to enjoy the day like this. It was nice out, the breeze was just right, and he got to see his favorite enemy fall on her face. How much better could it get? It couldn't is what the weyrling decided before he squatted down to give the girl a hand. Her misery was funny yes, but the aggravation she would feel from having to accept help from him was even better.

"Come on..." he said in a resigned tone, hand stretched out for her to take. It really wouldn't be quite as fun if she stayed playing in the dirt, "L'ka isn't here to come save you..." No, instead she had the most unlikely superhero of them all in front of her, complete with trusty side kick Eyesore as the ever practical - even if tiny - voice of reason in all of his grand schemes. Without a sound the blue firelizard sat on a branch above and just watched the scene unfold. His person might have some strange choices in friends...but at least this meant that he got to socialize with Charming again. The blue chirped, but only once to alert his brown friend where he was. Come and visit if you dare...

[Ember]

Deer in headlights. That was an accurate description of Nephele as the laughter rung out from the trees. A blush crept onto her face and she literally facepalmed. Not only did she have an audience, but it had to be him of all people. There was no way she could mistake that laugh or the figure that dropped out of a tree. What the heck was with this kind of meeting again? Of course he had to be there for one of her clumsy moments. Seriously, why did this one person have to see her at all her worst times? It might even have been bearable if it was spread among different people. But no...he'd seen her storm off after their first meeting, her freaked out reaction to his anger, her down with the plague...

It was no surprise that his grin was met with a glare that could have sent her two flitters between to safety in a heartbeat had it been turned on them. As he leaned down she angled her upper body away from him. She visibly twitched at the use of her nickname. To her knowledge she had never said he could call her that. She was getting really tired of glaring though so she smoothed her face into one of neutrality. She was good at putting on masks. That was an interesting idea...what if she jsut kept a happy face on around him all the time? Maybe that would freak him out enough so he'd leave her alone.

The hand that was offered to her made her blink in utter confusion for a moment. What? Involuntarily, her eyes narrowed and she continued to simply stare at the hand. It was the mention of L'ka that snapped her back to reality and she snorted. Right, cause she would really want that bumbling fool to be her saviour. It wasn't much better that it was K'sel though...The offered hand continued to wait and she was tempted to just be stubborn and refuse but she doubted she could stand up otherwise. Her eyes clearly said 'I hate you' as she took K'sel's hand and let him pull her up.

Nephele clenched her teeth against the pain and tried to keep her balance. She ultimately failed, ending up leaning a good portion of her weight on K'sel. Traitorous ankle! Unbidden, a thought came to her, He's filled out again since he was sick. Gah! She pushed away from him and made her way to the tree he'd been in to use its support instead. It might actually have been better if it was L'ka. Both guys would have ruined her day but only one would knowingly annoy her.

At the cheep, Charming glanced at the humans and decided they were fine on their own. Besides, his blue friend probably had a good view, depsite the fact that he was hiding. The chocolatey brown fluttered towards the sound and made a spectacular 'entrance' to where Eyesore was by crashing through the leaves. Ta-da! Misfit had no interest in Charming's friend, so he settled on a branch to watch the humans curiously.

[Lotty]

Was he told he could call her Nephy? Absolutely not. Was he using the name anyway? Yes of course, and he would do it until it stopped being funny for him. In other words, he wasn't going to be letting up anytime soon. It was just too easy to irritate her, and by proxy that meant he couldn't wipe that smile off of his face. Even as she slipped into something of a shield...a sorry excuse for apathy...he still felt good and he still felt the corners of hip lips curled up so cruelly. Why should he have to put up any fronts anyway? Sometimes it was better for others to know exactly how you felt. This just so happened to be one of those times. Just look and see how happy your misery makes me!

Ok. Maybe he wasn't that bad. He wasn't a sociopath, he was just a young man. Unfortunately he was a young man with a horrible form of flirting and courtship. Who would have guessed that he wasn't just subconsciously trying to get under her skin in more than one way? Here's a hint: everyone. The most excruciating part of all of their encounters had to be the tangible tension that hung around the two of them...and today it was hanging down like a thick cloud of fog. It was something in that push...something in the way she took his hand and then repelled him all at once. Childishly he suspected that maybe she was afraid of cooties...even more immaturely he figured that she was afraid to touch what she couldn't have.

Oh yes...K'sel was so tempting. He was the forbidden fruit in this garden.

He pursued her, stepping to her side as she leaned against the tree. Could she really be that hurt? Before he could gain a pang of sympathy the thought was squashed. He knew by now she was something of a faker...and he wouldn't play P'mon-Pretendy-Time ever again. He waited a moment for her to speak...but K'sel wasn't one for silence today, "Oh...did I leave you speechless?" Because if he had, he should learn to do that more often. It was good for his ear drums and all, "Not even a thank you for helping you up...or a snappy reply to the little L'ka comment?" He didn't suppose she was much too happy with how he had handled the blue weyrling interrupting their conversation.

Charming had abundant flair, Eyesore was willing to give him that much, a little flamboyant for his tastes...but what were you going to do? Charming was quite the adorable flitter, and amiable too. Since the brown strove so hard to stick with him, the blue couldn't help but grant him friendship. Misfit might have had a chance too...but staying all the way over there gained him no points. Instead Eyesore chirrped one more hello before cocking his head and flicking a glance down at the two-leggers bellow. So weird they were!

[Ember]

Nephele managed an annoyed eyeroll at the man's smile. No subtlety at all. Such a childish person he was. She admittedly privately that she too was just as bad. Every time she met him like this she always had the option of walking away if she wanted. And herein lies the problem. For whatever freakish reason she actually enjoyed butting heads with him..until it got out of hand and something stupid happened. The momentary silence was caused by her considering escaping while she could. She didn't realize that it was already too late.

Nephele turned as he followed her, shifting so her back was leaning agaisnt the tree trunk instead of her side. Did he not know what personal space was? Nevermind that he actually wasn't invading her personal space at all. "Speechless? Me?" The brow she quirked was full of scorn. "Really, K'sel. You should know better than that by now." Ignooooring the L'ka comment. She did not want to think of what had happened when the two had met. "Thanks soooo much for your help, K'sel," she said, voice sickeningly sweet. "I don't know how I'd ever get by without you."

Nephele was using her words as a shield. A shield against that unbearable tension that was so very obvious between them. She was wilfully blind to what it was that caused the tension. She didn't want to understand whatever was going on between her and K'sel. So she'd keep arguing with him until one of them gave up and left. Arguing was her safezone with K'sel, even if she didn't realize it as such. Casually, she dropped the bait, "You know...chores could be really worthwhile sometimes. I met the most interesting person in the creche a couple of days ago." She'd been dying to see his reaction to the fact that he'd met that woman. Now was her chance.

Charming fluted at Eyesore in return and landed further down on the same branch. From there he proceeded to shift to an almost feline stalking pose and crawl along the branch towards Eyesore. Fufufu! Misfit also chirped at the greeting but still remaind where he was, head tilted to the side. Strange people. He really should liven up the atmosphere for them. Hmm...nah. The kitchens would be more fun. He launched off his branch and popped between.

[Lotty]

So much love hate. It was really awesome, that was the only word for it. Really what could be said about the pair at this point? Nothing really, the source of their tension was very obvious even if the two of them were both a little too selfish to notice. It was always about something someone else was doing. In K'sel's mind Nephy was being aggravating. It was her who was so unsufferable. The problem could never be in his own prideful ways keeping him from just walking away. Surely similar things could be said from her perspective...and so the cycle continues.

He wasn't invading her space before, but he was going to now. He figured that she wouldn't mind too much anyway...or if she did then she couldn't complain out loud. After all, they did share a bed with one another. Even if it wasn't intimate, they still slept together...so personal bubbles should have been thrown to the wind at this point. He leaned on the same tree, choosing to prop himself up by the side...the same way that Nephele had been before she moved. Very comfortable it was, and it showed with the very laissez faire manner he was holding himself: legs crossed and a hand calmly hooked into the waist band of his pants. Staring her down was easy until she dropped this bomb on him.

He felt his eyes narrowing. What woman did she meet? He had the strange, horrible, feeling he knew exactly who she had encountered. His real fear was exactly what she spilled. Marina after all had a knack for yabbering when excited, and she was very, very, proud and excited when it came to the subject of her eldest son. This did not bode well at all, but he refused to show it and above all he refused to believe that she had actually spoken to his mother. This was clearly another ploy. He calmly pulled himself together and feigned boredom, "Oh really? What old ninny talked your ear off in there? Did she pinch your cheeks and call you a cutie too?" He reached out and pulled the just described gesture on her.

What was that firelizard doing? He hopped down the branch a bit unsure about what Charming had planned. Did he want to play or something? Hmmmm. Eyesore just wasn't sure how he felt about this. Making fun o salamandyrs was one thing, but this was a whole nother animal. He whirled his head and around and came face to face with the brown. Again there was silence, but unspoken was the question What is this you are trying to pull? Well, at least the brown's confusingness was half the fun of socializing with him.

[Ember]

As a matter of fact, Nephele very much disliked K'sel in her personal space. It made her jumpy really. Almost how aware of another person someone is if they're afraid of being tickled. At least, that's the first thing that popped into mind. The second example was not worth thinking about. She wanted to edge away but that could only be considered a loss. She really shouldn't have minded half as much as she did, having once spent the night more or less in his arms. Or perhaps that's why she was more bothered by it. That had been the first time she'd slept with a guy innocently. More than that, though, was the fact K'sel probably knew that.

Pushing aside the physical proximity problem, the girl's mouth curled upwards ever so slightly at his silent reaction. So he already knew who she was talking about. That made it all the more fun. She didn't even glare when he pinched her cheeks despite the urge to swat his hands away. If anything her smile grew in anticipation of what she was going to say. She did reach up and remove his hands before speaking. "Hmm...what was her name again? She was quite friendly," she drawled. He was partially right though. She had nearly talked her to death. The girl had eventually just tuned her out in favour of taking care of kids.

Nephele pretended to give the name thought, though she was really just enjoying dragging it out. Finally she finished her fun with, "Oh that's right! Her name was Marina. Such a lovely name. She was good company, very informative. It was quite a surprise to find out I actually knew her son." Another pause, just to let it sink in. "Southern weyrbrat, mm? Explains a few things, Kasella~" Namely why he'd had such an interesting reaction to a simple lick at that Gather. Clearly experience with such things came later to southern boys. The thought amused her.

Charming chittered amusement, clearly only playing around with the blue. He was still a ways down the branch but he flung himself forward as if he was a pouncing feline. He missed his mark by far, but he didn't mean to alienate Eyesore in the process of his playing. He chirped cheerily and walked the rest of the way to Eyesore and actually flopping onto his back. Why hello! You look funny from this angle, the pose clearly said.

[Lotty]

Shards. What to say? What to think? What to do? He never would have counted on this happening, but he should have seen it coming really; this was the problem with being a native, there were people who knew you your whole life. There was no way to hide certain facts and aspects. Not that his past was really anything to keep covered up. There were no great secrets in the young man's life, but there were a fair share of embarrassing stories. The usual kind that seemed to creep up on all little boys, the only difference was that their mothers weren't alive to spill it. K'sel's very much way and Faranth love her, but the woman just did not know when to stop.

Apparently she divulged his pre-Impression name. Sure, anybody who knew a thing or two could have given that information up, but considering that the rest of his weyrling class was dead along with any body else from his candidacy he thought that the memory of his "pretty" name would be long gone. Marina just couldn't help but continue to call him Kasella though....it had a way of rolling off the tongue quite beautifully if you were to ask her. It also had a way of irritating K'sel oddly enough. It wasn't so much the name (even if still sometimes caught himself saying Kasella or more commonly saying "I'm Ka-sharding-ella" in moments of facetiousness) but it was that motherly tone it was said in. It made him feel like a child, like he was being scolded. Nephele had a way of achieving the same bite when she uttered the name too. Ugh.

It was almost a glower...but he trained his face in apathy. He refused to give her the pleasure of knowing that she had gained the upper hand. He had to shake it off - somehow. He was betting a good old fashioned round of playing dumb would do the trick and so he replied in an even droll manner, "Ohhh really? I am quite fond of my mother..." he began, almost not even acknowledging the statement he had taken as a backhanded insult, "it's no secret that I was born here...a long line of dragonriders really." It bothered K'sel a little bit that he was just a watered down version of his father and his father before that, but what are you going to do? "So what revelations did my dear mother grant you....other than my name..." his voice did grow sour towards the end. Sharding woman.

Eyesore watched as Charming pounced and missed. Silly brown! You aren't supposed to miss! It wasn't that hard of a thing to do after all. Of course the blue didn't totally grasp the idea of playing. A very serious type he only knew to pounce as an attack, things you did when you wanted to protect yourself or eat. Very curious behavior. As Charming rolled over onto his back Eyesore bounced over to him and craned his head over giving his clutch brother a long hard look before poking him with a claw. Stop playing dead! Clearly that was what he was doing...right?

[Ember]

Nephele was nothing if not pleased. The way her eyes narrowed with pleasure and the smirk on her face should be testament to that. She slowly stood up straight, testing her weight on her ankle. It would really hurt to walk on but it didn't seem as serious as she'd first thought. Time to escape while she could? It would be nice to be the winner for once. All the other times she considered either ties or losses. Nuoth would want to go swimming soon anyways. She'd left the green sleeping peacefully in the barracks. No doubt oiling and a bath would be required when she woke.

Her decision made, the girl glanced at K'sel's apathetic expression and snorted. She knew a mask when she saw it, at least when it came to this guy. There was no way he wasn't at least slightly annoyed she knew one of his secrets. As the conversation took an almost normal route, she smiled with dark amusement. "Ah, just a copy of all your ancestors before you? And here I thought you were even a little bit unique." She shook her head and threw her hands up a bit. Nephele glanced up into the trees, clearly looking for her pet. When she didn't find him she frowned slightly. Well, he could take care of himself. K'sel's blue wasn't a danger to Charming either.

The brunette turned her body in the direction she knew the weyr was. Her sense of direction was surprisingly good for a girl who had been confined to one place or another most of her life. Her path was more or less back the way she'd come, though there had been a bit of wandering from a direct path from the weyr to where she currently was. It also had her back facing the brownweyrlingrider. Over her shoulder she finally said, "What other revelations? I wonder..." With that she started off towards the weyr, favouring her hurt ankle. Would he ever find out exactly what she'd learned? Probably not. It would be fun to annoy him though.

The brown sensed his girl was leaving and though he ought to leave with her, he was more preoccupied with his friend. Charming reacted quite quickly after being poked. He went totally slack, eyes closed and head flopped over to one side. Oh no, Eyesore killed him! What would the blue do now? The brown waited a few moments before opening one eye and cheeping at his friend. Did he worry him?

[Lotty]

Lose the Girl. Win the War.

It should be that easy. If he just let her walk off and have her little small scale victory then just get her back later. It was the logical thing to do, but there was no such thing as logic when a young male's hormone's mixed with an equally demanding sense of pride. He would not be bested by this! Oh no! He began to march right after her at first wordless and just seething. He wasn't exactly sure what to say...he wasn't even sure what he was mad about, all he knew was that she had spoken with his mother and that was never good.

Oh...and she said he wasn't unique. BUT HE WAS! He was told so. Thora had said it...he missed her. Much like with Nephele, their encounters began with his smart mouth...it ended much more smoothly. He didn't know if she had succumbed to the plague or was one of the disappearances, but he did know that she wasn't in his class anymore, and that was too bad, because he had started to grow very fond of the blonde who had called him a "true original". Hmmf.

Well she wasn't going to get anywhere fast with that bum ankle anyway. He'd offer her a shoulder to lean on...for a price, "Excuse me ma'am but where do you think you are going limping around like that? And nice job not answering that question...you have a real knack for that," she did manage to pull the same kind of stunts the last time he interrogated her. Oh he could punch L'ka again for interrupting that moment.

Eyesore wasn't sure what to do with a dead firelizard. He looked around. Maybe he could bury him under some leaves, then nobody would know. Not even his! He leapt up and began plucking down leaves and dropping them down onto the brown. One, two, three... just as he was getting to work on hiding Charming when he saw an eye pop open. That dirty trickster. A loud shriek and he began scolding the brown, flapping his wings in a lightning fast flurry. That was not playing nice! And this blue was going to let him know one way or another.

[Ember]

Nephele wasn't sure whether she was annoyed or pleased he was following her. She had half expected him to follow, of course, but it only proved more how unoriginal he was. She generally liked being a bit of an unknown, even if only in her own mind. As silence continued to reign she sighed slightly in relief. She had intended for her walk to be calming, not filled with tension and frustration. If K'sel knew he was doing her a favour by being quiet, what would he do?

When he finally spoke up she shot a look of slight annoyance at him. He just couldn't hold out a little longer could he? She shook her head and said, "I, good sir, don't have all the free time in the world. I have a dragon to look after." Her implication was obvious; K'sel clearly did nothing but sit around and do nothing. Not her fault that was all she'd ever really seen him do. "And I am pretty good at escaping, aren't I?" A note of self-disparagement entering her voice without her notice.

She wasn't particularily proud of that ability. She snatched at a low branch as she passed by it and her hand came away with a few leaves. She began to disect them as she walked. Nephele let the pieces she tore off drift to the forest floor as she tried to extract the stem. It proved a good distraction from any of her thoughts. Her eyes really should have been focused on what was in front of her though. Eventually she'd end up running into something or tripping over something. No one was lucky enough to blindly walk in a forest and come out unscathed.

Charming chittered with amusement at his blue friend's reaction. It was worth his not-so-hard work. He rolled upright and sat, listening to the scolding for a while. He finally let out a single soothing cheep. A joke, a joke! If the blue could see himself he might find it funny too. Now wasn't there something they should do? Their people were leaving, after all. The brown didn't mind staying behind if Eyesore wanted to but it was up to the blue.

[Lotty]

Frowny face times infinity. She was still walking away...and even going so far as to playing with leaves as opposed to talking with him. How offensive. She then offended him further with her little comment. That was soooo Nephele. Little remarks. It wasn't like he didn't pick up the insinuation in that one. As if she had things to do with her dragon that he didn't. At least he had his own weyr to return to and take care of. His dragon was bigger and something substantial to wash. His lessons were long and demanding and led by Darya of all people making it an exercise in how to be a smartass above all else. On top of that he could go between, which while liberating also meant that he had to take special care to make sure Pettahth's hide didn't crack. Hmmmf! The nerve of her to suggest he didn't do anything.

He wasn't going to grace her with a reply to this though. It was a moot point. Soon enough she would be in the same position and then she could see that there wasn't a chance that you could just get away with lounging all the time. Instead he addressed her other words, "Yes you are, but I am going to be there when you can't...." and he was going to laugh, laugh, laugh. Not that he even had to mention that part.

Finally he stopped and decided to just let her go. She wasn't going to get very far on that ankle of hers or wandering around paying more attention to leaves than where she way walking. The girl was asking for trouble, but at very least he could wish her a safe voyage right? Even with well wishes an ample amount of taunting was thrown into the mix, "Well, good luck with your escape...and be careful." He waggled his wingers in a fake good bye just incase she decided to look back.

Eyesore slowly faded out his squawking as the other firelizard fluted at him sweetly. Ok, ok. He'd quiet down, but that didn't mean he was very happy with Charming. How would he like it if he pulled a prank on him? He was sure Charming wouldn't be all too please either. Oh well. The blue glanced in the direction of their respective owners. K'sel was looking a little ticked, and so Eyesore figured they could commiserate. In a quick flash the blue was gone from the branch. Did he go to between? No. Just fast. A perk of being tiny. Before you know it he was on the brownweyrling's shoulder and chittering at him instead. Cheer up! At least the other two legger didn't try and play dead after all!