Nights of idleness [Piden]

[Kisha-Ra]

Yoalla lay on the ground just outside the wherling’s apartments, leaning against Yosk’s side and looking up at the stars. The autumn air was rather chilly at this late or early hour (Yoalla had no idea if late night had yet crossed into early morning) and the ground was subtlely leeching the heat out of her body but Yoalla felt no urge to go inside. She was actually starting to hate living in a place with no windows, as soon as she graduated she was going to apply for permission to get a shuttered window installed in her new apartment.

The only major, glaring flaw in her plan was an astonishing lack of funds for such work. Yoalla had no idea how much the modification would cost but she was prepared to bet on a high price. She did have something to sell at least, her former life as a prostitute hadn’t left her bereft of skills. It was just that no one around here seemed to want those skills. Cursed decadent Weyr, why couldn’t these dragonriders have moral hang ups like holders. Then she’d be rich beyond her wildest dreams. Maybe she’d even have two windows.

Yosk shifted slightly, unbothered by the chilly air, but mildly confused by her bonded’s thoughts of profit, windows, and sex without passion. The green simply ignored those things which confused her however, and sent a quiet thought to her handler. It was nice to be curled up under the sky like this, was it not? Yosk liked it, especially since the little troublesome flitters were safely asleep, when they were being bothersome they were really bothersome.

Yoalla turned a little more comfortably against her wher’s side and silently agreed

[Ruby]

Piden laughed aloud. He couldn't remember the last time he'd done that. Arms wrapped around Pidesk's neck, the two were racing through the night at breakneck speed. Piden's eyes were closed, relying only on Pidesk's sight. It was one of the most exhilirating things Piden had ever done, including flying on a dragon. It felt so much different when you were in control. Or more correctly, sharing control- Pidesk was clear about that. The Bronze snorted at his Handler's thoughts, jogging suddenly to one side to avoid a tree. Piden almost slipped, but held his grip at the last minute.

"Alright, Desk, I think that's enough!" Piden panted, raising his voice even though he didn't need to. Pidesk was already slowing down, panting too. "Let's go get Red, eh?" the Handler suggested, right as Pidesk sent an image of the tiny green Salamandyr. Piden laughed aloud again, and Pidesk snuffled in agreement. Running his fingers back through his red hair to push it off his face, he put the other hand on Pidesk's shoulder and walked with the Wher back towards the Apartments.

On their way back, Piden spotted someone on the ground near the Wherling's area. It had to be a Wherling, from the size- Pidesk wasn't that large for a Wher, but this one was even smaller. Not by much, but still. Quickly swapping his mediocre night vision for Pidesk's much better eyes, Piden smiled. Well well well, wasn't that little Wherling a hot little piece? This could be interesting. "Come on," he whispered to Pidesk, gesturing the Wher forward. Normally the bronze liked greens, but now he was hanging back. Come on, what's the problem? Piden asked directly. Pidesk was... embarassed?

Shrugging, Piden sauntered forward, shoving his short sleeves up to bare a little more muscle. The air was crisp this late in the year, but it wasn't cold yet, and he was still warm from the run. Dropping his head so a little hair flopped endearingly into his eyes, he shoved his hands into his pockets and stopped in front of her. "Nice stars tonight?" he asked, making his voice extra-casual while obviously totally ignoring everything but her. Pidesk hovered behind his Handler, poking a head around Piden and whuffling curiously at Yosk. Pidesk had always liked Greens, and this one was no exception. That didn't mean he wasn't shy.

[Kisha-Ra]

Yosk shifted slightly, noticing the bronze and his handler before Yoalla did due to her superior hearing. However the green did nothing about them, she was happy sprawling out with her handler and for a while it seemed the older wher and his handler would pass on by. However when they paused and gave Yoalla and Yosk a second look the green tidied up her posture a bit so she wouldn’t totally uncoordinated, and turned to prod yoalla with her muzzle, showing her the bronze pair. As Yosk was more or less given to expect it was the human male who caught Yoalla’s attention.

Yoalla shifted slightly, subtly rearranging her body to show off her best attributes, and twitched her torso slightly so her shirt caught under her and slid up and around to expose a generous amount of midriff and cleavage at various points. In the back of her mind she could feel Yosk’s amusement at such motives behind a simple movement. Her hand rose behind her, not so coincidently pulling her trapped shirt tighter against her body, and rubbed at Yosk’s head affectionately.

Since she was facing the wrong way Yoalla used Yosk’s eyes to examine the young man. There was definitely some interest in her there, that was good. Shame about the hint of arrogance in that sauntering walk and the way he, too, made subtle adjustments to his appearance to seem that little bit more alluring. It would be just her luck to run into a spintry out here, at least it didn’t look like he preferred men.

Yoalla turned her head and looked at the bronze handler from under lowered lashes. ‘Sure, they’re pretty.’ She replied casually, just a hint of her northern accent coming through thanks to careful enunciation. ‘Yosk likes them too.’ She sat up, partly to release Yosk from being her back rest, and partly so the other handler could get a good look down her shirt. She’d just lure him in a little then gently break it to him that her services weren’t free.

Yosk made no attempt to move, she simply stretched out her neck from a better look at Pidesk and sent him a curious thought. What was he doing out here then? What was this game that his bonded and hers played?

[Ruby]

Pidesk, with a snort for his rider, whacked Piden in the shoulder as he went over to Yosk. He knew what His was up to, even if Yosk wasn't sure, and although he didn't disapprove, he wasn't sure he approved, either. At least this time His was going after a Green, not a Brown or someone without at Bonded at all. Yosk was a green, and greens were Pidesk's favorite. The Bronze whuffled a greeting, tentatively reaching to touch Yosk's nose with his own. She was pretty, and that made him shy, but he did want to play if she wanted to, so he sent a curious thought right back. Curious and playful.

Piden, ignoring Pidesk's jostle, took the cover to do exactly what Yoalla had planned for him: he looked down her shirt. Luckily, under cover of his small stumble, it was possible she thought it was an accident, and if she threw a fit (although if the cut of her shirt meant anything, she wouldn't) he could claim innocence. He shifted back, keeping his eyes set on her face from that moment on. Not that his eyes made him look any more reputable, though. Even if he wasn't obviously checking her out, his hooded gaze and half-smile told the story well enough. He WAS interested, and he was about to do something about it.

After a... somewhat questionable but not quite awkward pause, during which he considered several awful pickup lines and finally discarded them, Piden stuck out a hand. "I don't believe we've met," he practically purred. "I'm Piden, and that's Pidesk. And you are?" he asked, backing off on the sexy just for a moment. She seemed interested too, and he figured he'd let her have her say before he seduced her pants off. Because he would, that was already decided.

It was only a matter of time, and if he had his choice, Piden would rather be seduced than do the seducing. Much better for the self esteem.

[Kisha-Ra]

Yosk rose, taking as mush care with her posture as Yoalla did, for very different reasons. The pale green took care to bring her head up to look Pidesk in the eye, or as close as she could get, while making sure her own huge eyes were half closed so she wouldn’t horrify the bronze with them, and along with that tried to stretch out her body so Pidesk wouldn’t notice how fat she was. Hers said she looked better when she stood up straight and Yosk just knew she needed all the help she could get in that respect so she wouldn’t send everyone around her running away, howling in fear.

Play? Yosk tipped her head to one side curiously, forgetting her careful posture and allowing her overly large (for a wher) wings to unfold and stick out stiffly from her body. She’d play if Pidesk was sure he wanted her to. What did he want to play then? Yosk wasn’t really sure she liked the bronze yet but her habit of attempting to befriend anything that even looked friendly kicked in.

Yoalla felt her wher slip out from behind her, and smiled slightly. Maybe it would be good for the green to meet a quieter wher, not to mention one that wasn’t one of her clutchmates. She doubted Yosk would become amazingly outgoing all of a sudden to contrast the shy seeming bronze, but the green was, oddly enough, fairly social as well as terribly self conscious.

Enough about Yosk for a moment, Yoalla thought, noting that the bronzehandler’s gaze did, indeed, drop down her shirt for a moment before shifting back to her face, and if that expression wasn’t interested, then Yoalla was going to be poor for a long time.

‘I do believe we haven’t.’ Yoalla agreed with the statement, playfully, as she took the proffered hand, shook it and withdrew her own hand with a calculated amount of lingering. ‘I would be Yoalla, and my wher is Yosk.’ For a brief moment Yoalla regretted that Yosk had not chosen a longer name, it probably didn’t sound very good when you were introducing yourself to another handler, although Yoask would have sounded weird and Yoallask seemed a total mouthful, nevermind.

‘So what brings you two out here tonight?’ Yoalla inquired, wriggling around a bit, as if she was simply looking for a more comfortable position on the ground. ‘And why don’t you come down here, it’s rude to make me look up at you, you know.’

[Ruby]

Pidesk matched Yosk glance for glance, straightening up as she did. He wasn't a very big bronze, probably outsized by some particularly large brown Whers, so his head didn't stand that much higher than hers did. He had always been long rather than tall. A low tenor rumble escaped him, barely audible and totally non-threatening. He was simply excited to have a Green around that didn't panic at the sight of him half the time. Red was not a particularly good companion, even at the best of times.

Then Yosk tipped her head, and Pidesk knew what they should play. He tipped his head in the same direction that she moved hers, then flared his wings as well. His were normally sized, but too long- maybe Yosk would notice and feel more comfortable. Pidesk could tell that she wasn't totally confident around him, and he wanted her to be. She was green, so he liked her right off the bat. Simple as that. Stretching his wings as much as he could to make them look bigger, he held still, ready to mimic any movement Yosk could dream up.

Pidesk's contentment made Piden smile to himself, eyes turning inwards for a second... but only a split second. Yoalla interested him enough to mute Pidesk for now. Grinning openly at her greeting and the length of her handshake, he answered, "Nice to meet you two," without even a blink at the shortness of her Wher's name. Pidesk was about as close as a Wher could be to his handler; only Pidensk would have been closer. Yosk and Yoalla's bond wouldn't be that strong, but Piden gave no indication that he'd even noticed. He simply filed the information away for later.

Meanwhile, she was going on. "You have a point," he responded to her invitation, but stuck his hands in his pockets instead and this time obviously checked her out. "But the view is so nice from up here." He visibly struggled to keep a straight face for a moment, then burst out laughing, dropping to the ground next to her. Extending his legs and balancing one boot heel on the opposite toe, Piden leaned back on his hands and let his laughter subside. "I'm sorry, no offense meant, of course. Please excuse my coarseness. I just couldn't let that one slide." Hopefully she'd take the joke and wouldn't be offended... but Piden was confident enough in his charms either way.

[Kisha-Ra]

Yoalla’s mouth twitched slightly into a self satisfied smile, it looked like she had Piden’s attention. Physical contact could be a most potent tool when used correctly. ‘Oh you’re enjoying the view are you?’ Yoalla asked archly, letting her smile spread out into a challenging grin. ‘I suppose the view isn’t too bad from here either.’ Yoalla’s eyes trailed pointedly over Piden’s body, and if her eyes lingered over his pockets more than any other part of him, well that was to be expected.

Yosk’s eyes opened fully, giving the green a shocked look as she dropped back a pace and tried to give the bronze wher a suspicious look. What was he up to? Was he making fun of Yosk? The green’s tail switched from side to side as she considered this, then her eye colours brightened up as she realised this was the game. Ah, well, prepare to be beaten bronze; Yosk was such a strange ugly shape that she could easily do things other whers couldn’t. How about this, could he copy it? Yosk reared back onto her hindquarters and after a moment of hopping and flapping got her clumsy body to balance on her rear legs with her wings outstretched and remained motionless, waiting to see what Pidesk was going to do about it.

‘You know, Piden, I’m not at all sure I should forgive you.’ Yoalla said playfully. ‘You have noticeably lowered the tone of this whole conversation. I might be able to bring myself to accept your apology if you knew someone who could put business my way.’ Yoalla’s hand drifted over and rested casually on Piden’s thigh, making it abundantly clear what sort of business she had in mind. She’d decided she’d better let him know where he stood before they got too much further involved in this little sex-flirtation game. The bronze handler seemed well enough, but not well enough to get her for free.

[Ruby]

Well, this was going QUITE well. Piden was greatly enjoying Yoalla's company; certainly much more so than the few dalliances he'd had with Weyrfolk recently. It was difficult to find people to sleep with when you wanted to go to bed at dawn and sleep through the day. Generally, the normal population had other things to do, and the Wherhandlers were such a small, scattered group that he generally didn't run into them. Once again, he briefly pondered the Night Watch. Eh, he'd figure that out later. Right now, he simply settled back on his elbows and turned to the side so he could fix Yoalla with a subtly smouldering gaze.

Pidesk stretched his eyes as well, although they were nowhere as big as Yosk's, and matched her suspicious step backwards. Her tail switched, and he switched his, then rumbled happily when she figured the game out. Stretching his wings, Pidesk reared onto his back feet, wavering unsteadily for a minute. This was not a comfortable postion for a Wher! He wavered into an upright position, and held it for just a second before he started tipping backwards. Lashing his tail, he squealed and wiggled around so he landed on his side instead of his back. With an embarassed trill, Pidesk dipped his head and cocked a leg, bowing to Yosk, his eyes whirling happily. She'd won this round.

"Mm," was Piden's very eloquent response to Yoalla's proposition. He reached down, lifting her wrist gently between his thumb and forefinger and returning it to the ground in front of her. "You know, it isn't good manners to get my hopes up like that." He should have known; a 'working girl'. Unfortunately, Piden realized, she was quite good at her trade. Suppressing the urge to swallow like an inexperianced boy, he met her eyes. Smitten wasn't exactly the word, but it was either her or a flightmoth, and he doubted any of them were awake. Flicking red hair out of his eyes, he mentally ran over his finances, then allowed the corner of his mouth to curl up.

"Alright, you win," he conceeded with an incongruous grin. "But only this once, you understand." A little heat re-entered his voice, and he leaned in, holding her eyes. "Just so you know, after this I plan to be much harder to catch. And I still expect that apology," he murmured, reaching out to stroke one finger down the side of her face, "And I'll need to know how... valuable your time is. No more surprises, now!" He added mock-firmly. What Yoalla didn't know was that Piden certainly expected to get his money's worth. And possibly a two-for-one deal.